Telecoms
Features
2nd Chance Charlie – 2degrees & New Zealand’s Super Rugby clubs
Last year, New Zealand telco 2degrees leveraged its sponsorships of the country’s Super Rugby clubs via a branded reality show that gave five Kiwis a second shot at playing professional rugby.
We Connect for Good – BT & The FA/FAW/SFA/IFA
BT abruptly pivoted its activations to digital after the pandemic struck just a month after it launched a new, five-year ‘4-3-3’ Home Nations soccer sponsorship strategy in February 2020.
Netball v Football Exhibition Match – Telkom & Netball South Africa
To promote its new title sponsorship of South Africa’s Netball League in 2019, Telkom set out to grow support, attendance and awareness through an event-based campaign.
5G Stadium Experience – Verizon & NFL
At 2020’s Super Bowl LIV in Miami, NFL telecoms partner Verizon showcased the capability of 5G with an immersive experience.
Team of Us: Everyone In – Vodafone & the IRFU
Launched ahead of Ireland’s 2019 Guinness Six Nations defence and running through to the autumn Rugby World Cup in Japan, the multi-phase ‘Everyone In’ campaign was the latest iteration of Vodafone’s Ireland’s long running ‘Team of Us’ Irish rugby activation.
Ireland’s Ball – Vodafone & the IRFU
In the lead-up to the 2019 Rugby World Cup, the IRFU’s principal partner activated via a unique rugby ball that linked the fans at home to the players in Japan.
Be Their Armour, Wear the Rose – O2 & England Rugby
Running September through November 2019, O2’s activation of its England Rugby partnership around the 2019 Rugby World Cup spanned television, OOH, social, in-store, in-stadium, event experiences and screenings.
The Team That Wouldn’t Be Here – Verizon & NFL
In January and February 2019, Verizon leveraged its rights around the NFL Playoffs, Championship Games and Super Bowl via a multi-phase, multi-platform activation that honoured America’s first responders.
Purple Couch – T-Mobile & UFC
In 2018, T-Mobile US’s Metro by T-Mobile brand activated its UFC rights through a live 90-minute brand-owned social broadcast which set out to fill the pre-fight content void.
Month of May 5G – Verizon & IndyCar
Around the 2019 Indy 500, Verizon leveraged its IndyCar assets to showcase its 5G Ultra-Wideband through a month-long campaign.
#ChampionsSofa – Sony & Uefa
Sony boosted the profile of its Xperia smartphones via its 2017-18 Uefa Champions League sponsorship that featured a Gogglebox-style activation called #ChampionsSofa.
AR Giant Soccer Player Stunt – Orange & LaLiga
LaLiga media partner Orange teamed up with Google Assistant for an augmented reality stunt at the 2019-20 season opener between Celta Vigo and Real Madrid.
#MotoGPConnect – Tata Communications & MotoGP
Tata Communications’ #MotoGPConnect campaign raised awareness of the company’s broadcast solutions to potential new customers in international sport and positioned Tata as an innovator in the media and entertainment space.
FA rolls Wembley and St George’s Park assets into BT deal, still falls short on price
England’s Football Association has rolled the assets from three separate deals into its new deal with UK telco BT, which was agreed in June.
FIGC fights negative trend in sponsorship revenues from weak position
Italian FA (FIGC) set to earn €37m from sponsorship rights in 2019
Top Partner deals renewed this month with Eni and Tim
Telefónica renews Team Movistar UCI World Tour deal
Spanish telco Telefónica has renewed its title sponsorship of the Team Movistar UCI World Tour outfit from 2019 to 2021.
Telefónica will pay between €12m ($13.5m)
‘CR7 effect’ may ease political pressure on Serie A sponsorships
Italy’s top football league, Lega Serie A, ought to be on course for a decent increase in the value of its centrally-sold sponsorship rights from the €34m ($40m) it earned in 2017-18, having agreed deals this month for the Serie A title sponsorship, Official Ball Supplier and Official Video Gaming licensing rights for the next three seasons.
World Cup activations round-up (3/3)
Budweiser
Budweiser is the official beer of the FIFA World Cup following its parent company Anheuser-Busch's deal until after the 2022 World Cup, worth around $22.
Nokia returns for second innings with Kolkata Knight Riders
Mobile phone brand Nokia has returned as the main shirt sponsor of the Indian Premier League’s Kolkata Knight Riders, a position it occupied for seven years between 2008 and 2014.
China Unicom: Brand positioning as a leader in smart tech
Chinese telco China Unicom has become a domestic partner of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games to showcase its smart technology and raise its brand profile versus rivals China Mobile and China Telecom.
China Unicom outbids domestic rivals for Beijing 2022
Chinese telco China Unicom has become the Official Telecommunication Services Partner of the Beijing 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in deal valued in the high tens of millions of dollars.
Orange goes deeper into French football with four-year FFF deal
Orange, the former state telco of France, this month agreed a deal to become a Main Partner of the Fédération Française de Football, the French football federation, for the next rights cycle.
The Wembley Cup with EE: Portrait of an activation
The success of last weekend’s 'Wembley Cup with EE', the third annual exhibition match between two YouTuber tribes, with a few football legends thrown in, presents an interesting problem for the event’s title sponsors and organisers, the UK network operator EE.
Vodafone: National subsidiaries leverage power of global brand
Telecommunications company Vodafone hands responsibility to its national and regional marketers to identify which sports properties best fit the brand's ambitions in the territories in which it operates