IOC Rule 40 Revisions Already Transforming Crowded Olympic Advertising Marketplace

The IOC's relaxation of Rule 40 for the Rio Games already have "transformed the once predictable and hermetically regulated Olympics into a crowded race for attention among dozens of brands, big and small," according to Zach Schonbrun of the N.Y. TIMES. The IOC for Rio began "allowing any nonofficial sponsors an opportunity to compose advertising campaigns tailored to Olympic athletes." Companies "needed to apply for a waiver by January," and campaigns, which were subject to approval, "had to begin in March." Under Armour is "already well into a campaign" featuring U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps, and GoPro has been "heavily promoting its relationship" with U.S. swimmer Missy Franklin. Citi Dir of Sponsorship & Marketing Tina Davis said that her company, which is an Olympics sponsor, "would need to wait and see how the Rio Games played out before judging the impact of the Rule 40 revisions." Davis: "We believe in the power of the Olympic rings, and we believe in our exclusive buy with NBC, which is where the majority of the eyeballs will be. So we’re not concerned with any other brand being able to co-opt us." Visa Chief Brand & Innovation Marketing Officer Chris Curtin said that the company, which has been an Olympic partner since '86, is "not yet overly concerned." But the company "did significantly move up its advertising schedule, releasing ads in June." Oiselle Founder & CEO Sally Bergesen said that she "struggled to see how the rule change helped" her small women's athletic apparel company, "even though it sponsors runners like Kara Goucher and Lauren Fleshman." Bergesen: "It’s a penalty because of the amount of money you’re going to spend for zero connection" (N.Y. TIMES, 7/4).