Nielsen Sports' research found that the value of World Cup sponsorship dropped between the '14 event in Brazil and this year's in Russia, according to Bill Wilson of the BBC. FIFA sponsor revenue fell from $1.63B to $1.45B between events. Nielsen said that the '15-18 sponsorship cycle was "a tougher sell" than for the previous two World Cups. It added, "But a new crop of sponsors, including several from China, helped Fifa weather the storm." Chinese sponsors "stepped into the breach" after a number of long-term FIFA backers, such as Johnson & Johnson, Castrol and Continental, "ended their association after the corruption scandal at football's world governing body" in May '15. China's largest commercial property company, Wanda Group, is one of FIFA's seven official partners, alongside Coca-Cola, adidas, Gazprom, Qatar Airways, Visa and Hyundai/Kia. One of the companies Wanda owns is Infront Media, a sports marketing firm which owns the media rights for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups across 26 Asian territories. The value of World Cup sponsorship "may have fluctuated recently, but overall it has grown strongly in the past two decades," with FIFA's '15-18 cycle revenues "more than twice the amount" for the '99-02 period. Nielsen Sports Managing Dir Glenn Lovett said, "FIFA will be hoping to return to growth in the cycle leading up to the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. It can probably look forward to support from Middle Eastern brands seeking to capitalize on the region's first World Cup" (BBC, 6/12).
'NEW PHENOMENON': BLOOMBERG reported the Chinese national team did not qualify for the 2018 World Cup, but when the tournament starts, "spectators will see six Chinese teenagers bearing FIFA flags and leading players onto the field." The flag-carriers, chosen by Wanda Group, are part of China's "record promotional blitz" at an event that is expected to draw 3.5 billion TV viewers in more than 200 countries. Chinese brands will account for "more than a third" of the estimated $2.4B in additional advertising spending worldwide related to the month-long tournament, Zenith estimated in a recent report. Zentih exec Jonathan Barnard, who helped compile the report, said, "What really struck me is how big a deal the World Cup is in China this year. It seems to be a new phenomenon" (BLOOMBERG, 6/11).
