Electronics manufacturer Panasonic has become the first top-tier partner of the International Olympic Committee to extend its deal through to the 2024 summer Olympic Games.
Panasonic, which has been a worldwide Olympic partner since the IOC’s global sponsorship programme began in 1985, will continue to enjoy exclusivity within the audiovisual product category. The category includes home entertainment equipment such as televisions, cameras, professional video equipment, professional displays including large in-venue screens, professional audio equipment and video surveillance equipment.
Panasonic was already a Worldwide Top Partner until the 2016 summer Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, but the new deal will run for eight years and cover the 2018 winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea, the 2020 summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, and the 2022 winter and 2024 summer Games, which are yet to be awarded. The agreement also covers the Youth Olympic Games organising committees, every National Olympic Committee and their team, and the IOC itself.
The IOC does not reveal the financial terms of its Worldwide Top deals, but the 2013-16 cycle is estimated to generate about $1bn in revenue, up from $663m a decade ago. Panasonic is one of 10 IOC top-tier partners through to 2016, alongside Atos, Coca-Cola, Dow, GE, McDonald’s, Omega, P&G, Samsung and Visa. Eight of these companies – Coca-Cola, Dow, GE, McDonald’s, Omega, Panasonic, P&G and Visa – have committed up to the 2020 Games.
“Panasonic was one of the founding members of our global sponsorship programme, and is the first Partner to commit to continue its global sponsorship through 2024. This is a clear demonstration of Panasonic’s continuing belief in the Olympic values and the company’s global commitment to the Olympic Movement,” IOC president Thomas Bach said.