Coca-Cola fills final Premier League sponsorship slot

As predicted by SportBusiness International, the Premier League and Coca-Cola Great Britain have announced a three-and-a-half-year partnership, starting in January 2019.

The deal, estimated to be worth around £10m a season, is Coca-Cola Great Britain’s largest ever sponsorship agreement and represents the first time the company will activate across multiple brands within its portfolio, showcasing a range of drinks including sparkling soft drinks, water, fruit-based drinks and low/zero-sugar options.

The contract is built around the Premier League’s IP and gives the brand access to player imagery, match footage and Premier League marks. The company has said it will look to enhance the fan experience through physical and digital activations, including a nationwide Premier League trophy tour.

Coca-Cola Great Britain said it has yet to plan all of the ways it will activate the partnership but a joint press release said the two parties were also “working to promote sustainability and recycling and will use the partnership to work together to continue this”.

Although the deal effectively grants the UK arm of the drinks brand the international rights to the Premier League, Jon Woods, general manager, Coca-Cola Great Britain and Ireland, said the priority is to activate in the UK.

“The partnership is a global partnership, so we have global rights,” he told SportBusiness International. “I would anticipate that, as they are global rights, we will find some ways to develop that partnership around the world, but we’ve made the partnership happen for our business here in the UK.”

The deal fills the seventh and final slot in the Premier League’s global sponsorship roster – the first time this has happened since the league dispensed with a title-sponsorship model and adopted a multi-partner approach.

Richard Masters, managing director of the Premier League, said: “Coca-Cola is a huge global brand that has an excellent track record of sponsorship in football, from multiple World Cups to several years partnering with the English Football League. We are excited that this is Coca-Cola Great Britain’s first portfolio-wide partnership and they will be bringing it to life across a range of brands.”

More to follow…