USA TODAY’s Bruce Horovitz cites a 10-year study by research firm Kantar Media as showing that the cost of 30-second Super Bowl spots is “growing at three to five times the rate it did a decade ago.” Kantar Media Senior VP/Research Jon Swallen said that if the “trend continues, the first $5 million Super Bowl commercial could emerge by 2016.” The price of slots has "jumped $30,000 to $500,000 annually in recent years compared with the $100,000 annual increase that was more common a decade ago" (USA TODAY, 1/15).
BEER BACKER: MARKETING magazine’s John Reynolds reports Carlsberg and the EPL have “agreed a three-year deal for Carlsberg to be the ‘Official Beer Partner’" of the league. The deal will run from the ’13-14 season through the end of the ’15-16 season. The EPL has been “without an official beer partner” since ’10, when its three-year deal with Budweiser ended. Carlsberg has a “long-standing relationship” with soccer “through international sponsorships of national teams and international tournaments” (MARKETINGMAGAZINE.co.uk, 1/15).
FOREIGN RELATIONS: EPL club Manchester United announced a pair of three-year sponsorship deals with companies based in China: Wahaha, a soft drink manufacturer, and China Construction Bank (CCB). The deals are ManU's first-ever in the soft drink and financial services categories. Wahaha, the largest beverage producer in China over the last 11 years, will be designated as the club’s official soft drinks partner in China. CCB received exclusive rights to produce the club’s branded credit card in Mainland China, where it will be offered to the bank’s 102 million customers (Christopher Botta, SportsBusiness Journal).
DUNKIN' 'NUTS: Wonderful Pistachios and the Harlem Globetrotters announced that they have signed a three-year, seven-figure sponsorship deal. The team will help promote the snack brand as part of its "Get Crackin'" campaign. Wonderful Pistachios receives in-game brand integration, advertising and product sampling. The team will wear the "Get Crackin'" logo on its jersey front and appear in a "Get Crackin'" commercial that will begin airing on Monday (Harlem Globetrotters). Wonderful Pistachios will "put millions behind a media buy for TV ads" featuring Globetrotter players (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 1/14 issue).
BETWEEN THE MONSTER AND THE SAINT: Saints QB Drew Brees and the Brees Dream Foundation yesterday announced a partnership with headphone company Monster. As part of the deal, Monster will support the foundation, which was established in ’03 to improve quality of life and provide care for cancer patients. Monster will join in sponsoring Brees' Hurricane Sandy Relief Concerts at Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans, and will collaborate with Brees to support other foundation programs including Seg4Vets, an initiative providing Segways for disabled military veterans that Monster has previously supported (Brees Dream Foundation).
