2006 FIFA World Cup sponsorship
Encyclopedia
Corporate sponsorship during the 2006 World Cup
has been a major source of revenue for FIFA
, but it has also led to criticism for overly commercializing the event and allocating too many game tickets to sponsors, as well as for prohibitive actions against non-sponsor advertising around the stadiums. FIFA has defended its policies by pointing out that all of its profits from the World Cup are invested back into worldwide football.
supplied team buses for each of the thirty-two finalists, and held a contest to decide the team bus slogans. Adidas
supplied fifteen personalized match balls for every match of the tournament. Each "Teamgeist" ball has the name of the stadium, the national teams, the date of the match and the kickoff time are printed. The balls used for the final match were gold, rather than the normal white.
The tournament itself also had a myriad of 'official' items including an official video game (2006 FIFA World Cup
) and song (“Time of Our Lives,” sung by Il Divo
and Toni Braxton
).
The fifteen official partners of the World Cup for 2006 were: Adidas
, Budweiser
, Avaya
, Coca-Cola
, Continental
, Deutsche Telekom
, Emirates
, Fujifilm
, Gillette
, Hyundai
, MasterCard
, McDonald's
, Philips
, Toshiba
, and Yahoo!
.
As companies who are not sponsors are not allowed to have their names overly associated with the World Cup, FIFA temporarily renamed seven of the twelve stadiums to “FIFA World Cup Stadium, [Name of City].”
raised €1.9bn in marketing revenue and €700m from sponsorship from the 2006 World Cup
. The 2006 FIFA World Cup
has fifteen “Official Partners,” each thought to have paid €40 million for the privilege. It has a further six “National Partners,” who paid €13m each for local advertising rights.
, it cannot be sold as a beer. Because of a longstanding copyright dispute with Czech
brewery Budweiser Budvar it can also not be sold under the name of Budweiser in Germany. Anheuser-Busch signed its sponsorship deal with FIFA before the 2006 World Cup’s host country was chosen, and opted to advertise the brand as Bud 百威, combining the first three letters of its English brand name with its Chinese brand name. Budweiser is the only sponsor with non English writing on its billboards.
During the first round match between the Netherlands
and Côte d'Ivoire
, over 1,000 Dutch fans who arrived at the stadium wearing orange lederhosen
were forced to remove their trousers because the lederhosen had the logo of Dutch brewery Bavaria. Bavaria, who had sold the lederhosen as part of an offer, was accused by FIFA
of "ambush marketing
" at the expense of American beer maker Budweiser
who had paid millions of Euro
to sponsor the competition and for the title of "Official Beer of the 2006 World Cup."
In April 2007, MasterCard
sued FIFA for reneging on a World Cup credit card sponsorship deal after it had awarded the sponsorship to VISA. MasterCard had the right of first refusal to sponsor the 2010 and 2014 World Cups but was not given the opportunity to do so. On Dec. 7, 2006, MasterCard won its US federal lawsuit against FIFA. The judge issued a ruling stating that FIFA had breached the contract and that MasterCard was entitled to sponsor the next two World Cups. The judge also brought to light that FIFA officials had repeatedly lied to both MasterCard and VISA during the negotiations.
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
has been a major source of revenue for FIFA
FIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
, but it has also led to criticism for overly commercializing the event and allocating too many game tickets to sponsors, as well as for prohibitive actions against non-sponsor advertising around the stadiums. FIFA has defended its policies by pointing out that all of its profits from the World Cup are invested back into worldwide football.
Examples of sponsorship
As sporting events have become increasingly commercialized, a wide variety of sponsorship opportunities have emerged - or been created - and the 2006 FIFA World Cup was no different. Hyundai Motor CompanyHyundai Motor Company
Hyundai Motor Company is a Korean multinational automaker based in Seoul, South Korea which, along with Kia, comprises the Hyundai Kia Automotive Group, the world's fourth largest automaker as of 2009. As of 2011, it is the world's fastest growing automaker for two years running...
supplied team buses for each of the thirty-two finalists, and held a contest to decide the team bus slogans. Adidas
Adidas
Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...
supplied fifteen personalized match balls for every match of the tournament. Each "Teamgeist" ball has the name of the stadium, the national teams, the date of the match and the kickoff time are printed. The balls used for the final match were gold, rather than the normal white.
The tournament itself also had a myriad of 'official' items including an official video game (2006 FIFA World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup (video game)
2006 FIFA World Cup is the official video game for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, published by EA Sports. 2006 FIFA World Cup was released simultaneously on the GameCube, PC, PlayStation 2, Xbox and Xbox 360 on April 24, 2006. In Europe it was simultaneously released on April 28, 2006...
) and song (“Time of Our Lives,” sung by Il Divo
Il Divo
Il Divo is a multinational operatic pop vocal group created by music manager, executive, and reality TV star Simon Cowell. Formed in the United Kingdom, they are also signed to Cowell's record label, Syco Music...
and Toni Braxton
Toni Braxton
Toni Michelle Braxton is an American R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Braxton has won six Grammy Awards, seven American Music Awards, and five Billboard Music Awards and has sold over 60 million records worldwide...
).
The fifteen official partners of the World Cup for 2006 were: Adidas
Adidas
Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...
, Budweiser
Budweiser (Anheuser-Busch)
Budweiser is a 5.0% abv American-style lager introduced in 1876 by Adolphus Busch and one of the highest selling beers in the United States. It is made with up to 30% rice in addition to hops and barley malt. Budweiser is produced in various breweries located around the world...
, Avaya
Avaya
Avaya Inc. is a privately held computer networking, information technology and telecommunications company that is a global provider of business communications systems. The international head quarters is in Basking Ridge, New Jersey, United States...
, Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola is a carbonated soft drink sold in stores, restaurants, and vending machines in more than 200 countries. It is produced by The Coca-Cola Company of Atlanta, Georgia, and is often referred to simply as Coke...
, Continental
Continental AG
Continental AG, internally often called Conti for short, is a worldwide leading German manufacturer of tires, brake systems, vehicle stability control systems, engine injection systems, tachographs and other parts for the automotive and transport industries. The company is based in Hanover, Germany...
, Deutsche Telekom
Deutsche Telekom
Deutsche Telekom AG is a telecommunications company headquartered in Bonn, Germany. It is the largest telecommunications company in Europe....
, Emirates
Emirates Airline
Emirates is the airline based in the Emirate of Dubai part of the United Arab Emirates . Based at Dubai International Airport it is the largest airline in the Middle East, operating over 2,400 flights per week, from its hub at Terminal 3, to 111 cities in 62 countries across six continents...
, Fujifilm
Fujifilm
is a multinational photography and imaging company headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.Fujifilm's principal activities are the development, production, sale and servicing of color photographic film, digital cameras, photofinishing equipment, color paper, photofinishing chemicals, medical imaging...
, Gillette
Global Gillette
Gillette is a brand of Procter & Gamble currently used for safety razors, among other personal care products. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, it was one of several brands originally owned by The Gillette Company, a leading global supplier of products under various brands, which was...
, Hyundai
Hyundai
Hyundai ) is a global conglomerate company, part of the Korean chaebol, that was founded in South Korea by one of the most famous businessmen in Korean history: Chung Ju-yung...
, MasterCard
MasterCard
Mastercard Incorporated or MasterCard Worldwide is an American multinational financial services corporation with its headquarters in the MasterCard International Global Headquarters, Purchase, Harrison, New York, United States...
, McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
, Philips
Philips
Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. , more commonly known as Philips, is a multinational Dutch electronics company....
, Toshiba
Toshiba
is a multinational electronics and electrical equipment corporation headquartered in Tokyo, Japan. It is a diversified manufacturer and marketer of electrical products, spanning information & communications equipment and systems, Internet-based solutions and services, electronic components and...
, and Yahoo!
Yahoo!
Yahoo! Inc. is an American multinational internet corporation headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, United States. The company is perhaps best known for its web portal, search engine , Yahoo! Directory, Yahoo! Mail, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Groups, Yahoo! Answers, advertising, online mapping ,...
.
As companies who are not sponsors are not allowed to have their names overly associated with the World Cup, FIFA temporarily renamed seven of the twelve stadiums to “FIFA World Cup Stadium, [Name of City].”
Revenue
FIFAFIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
raised €1.9bn in marketing revenue and €700m from sponsorship from the 2006 World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
. The 2006 FIFA World Cup
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
has fifteen “Official Partners,” each thought to have paid €40 million for the privilege. It has a further six “National Partners,” who paid €13m each for local advertising rights.
Sponsor controversies
There has been some controversy about several of FIFA’s sponsors. FIFA has been criticized for taking on McDonalds as a sponsor because many feel the chain’s unhealthy food should not be connected to a sporting event. Budweiser also has endured criticism for being the official beer of the World Cup in a country where, because it contains rice and fails the German ReinheitsgebotReinheitsgebot
The Reinheitsgebot , sometimes called the "German Beer Purity Law" or the "Bavarian Purity Law" in English, was a regulation concerning the production of beer in Germany. In the original text, the only ingredients that could be used in the production of beer were water, barley and hops...
, it cannot be sold as a beer. Because of a longstanding copyright dispute with Czech
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
brewery Budweiser Budvar it can also not be sold under the name of Budweiser in Germany. Anheuser-Busch signed its sponsorship deal with FIFA before the 2006 World Cup’s host country was chosen, and opted to advertise the brand as Bud 百威, combining the first three letters of its English brand name with its Chinese brand name. Budweiser is the only sponsor with non English writing on its billboards.
During the first round match between the Netherlands
Netherlands national football team
The Netherlands National Football Team represents the Netherlands in association football and is controlled by the Royal Dutch Football Association , the governing body for football in the Netherlands...
and Côte d'Ivoire
Côte d'Ivoire national football team
The Côte d'Ivoire National Football Team or Ivory Coast National Football Team, nicknamed Les Éléphants , represents Côte d'Ivoire in international football and is controlled by the Fédération Ivoirienne de Football...
, over 1,000 Dutch fans who arrived at the stadium wearing orange lederhosen
Lederhosen
Lederhosen are breeches made of leather; they may be either short or knee-length. The longer ones are generally called Bundhosen....
were forced to remove their trousers because the lederhosen had the logo of Dutch brewery Bavaria. Bavaria, who had sold the lederhosen as part of an offer, was accused by FIFA
FIFA
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
of "ambush marketing
Ambush marketing
Ambush marketing can be defined as a marketing strategy wherein the advertisers associate themselves with, and therefore capitalize on, a particular event without paying any sponsorship fee. The Macmillan English Dictionary defines ambush marketing as a marketing strategy in which a competing...
" at the expense of American beer maker Budweiser
Budweiser (Anheuser-Busch)
Budweiser is a 5.0% abv American-style lager introduced in 1876 by Adolphus Busch and one of the highest selling beers in the United States. It is made with up to 30% rice in addition to hops and barley malt. Budweiser is produced in various breweries located around the world...
who had paid millions of Euro
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
to sponsor the competition and for the title of "Official Beer of the 2006 World Cup."
In April 2007, MasterCard
MasterCard
Mastercard Incorporated or MasterCard Worldwide is an American multinational financial services corporation with its headquarters in the MasterCard International Global Headquarters, Purchase, Harrison, New York, United States...
sued FIFA for reneging on a World Cup credit card sponsorship deal after it had awarded the sponsorship to VISA. MasterCard had the right of first refusal to sponsor the 2010 and 2014 World Cups but was not given the opportunity to do so. On Dec. 7, 2006, MasterCard won its US federal lawsuit against FIFA. The judge issued a ruling stating that FIFA had breached the contract and that MasterCard was entitled to sponsor the next two World Cups. The judge also brought to light that FIFA officials had repeatedly lied to both MasterCard and VISA during the negotiations.