The IOC secured nearly $1B from its worldwide sponsorship program in the four-year cycle ending with the London Games, according to Vanessa Kortekaas of the FINANCIAL TIMES. The number is the highest in the organization's history. Marketing agency Brand Rapport Dir Nigel Currie said that for an event that "does not offer branding on the field of play, this marketing coup was 'unimaginable' just a few years ago." The appeal of sponsoring the Olympics and the way companies activated their campaigns were "partly a reflection of wider changes in the sports sponsorship landscape in recent years." Mainly, the reasons companies sponsor an event, and how they measure their return, has "become more sophisticated." Currie said, "Historically and primarily [sponsorship] has been about brand exposure and media exposure." He added that companies have started to develop other reasons for partnering with an event, "including driving sales or building client relationships." Rights holders, such as teams or sports governing bodies, have also become "more savvy about what they offer sponsors and how they divide up their property." ManU, for example, has "both a main team sponsor and a reserve team sponsor." Currie said, "It’s a realisation that the premiership has become so big and so popular, and such a global property that you’re now getting certain clubs thinking, well actually we don’t want to just give it all to one brand or one sponsor" (FINANCIAL TIMES, 11/1).
