Chinese mobile brand Huawei signed up Barcelona player Lionel Messi "as its global brand ambassador to help it connect with consumers in Europe and Latin America," according to Matthew Chapman of MARKETING MAGAZINE. Huawei's sponsorship of the Argentinian footballer "comes as the stature of football continues to grow in China." Huawei said the Messi sponsorship deal is in alignment with its strategy of striving toward "connecting greatness." The sponsorship "is not Huawei’s first foray into football." It "already has sponsorships with clubs including América, Santa Fe, Sporting Cristal, Arsenal, Atlético de Madrid and AC Milan, and players including Robert Lewandowski and Alexis Sánchez."
Huawei "hopes the Messi sponsorship will give it greater traction in Europe" (MARKETING MAGAZINE, 3/18). The PTI reported Messi "is also global brand ambassador for Indian auto major Tata Motors." Huawei shipped 108 million smartphones in '15 and "became the third-largest player after Apple and Samsung." The company "set a target of growing its smartphone sales" by 300% this year (PTI, 3/18).
