Coca-Cola agreed to its biggest U.K. sponsorship deal by becoming the Premier League's "seventh and final commercial partner," according to Bill Wilson of the BBC. It will become the official soft drink partner of the league, joining other sponsors Barclays, Carling, Cadbury, Nike, Tag Heuer and EA Sports. The three-and-a-half-year agreement starts in January. The financial details were not revealed. As well as using the deal to promote its mainstream Coca-Cola drinks, the firm will also use the deal "to promote other drinks it owns," including sparkling soft drinks, water, fruit-based drinks and low- and no-sugar drinks (BBC, 9/13). MARKETING WEEK's Molly Fleming reported Coca-Cola is "in the early stages of planning activations" but there will be digital and physical elements to the campaign as well as a U.K.-wide Premier League trophy tour. Coca-Cola Great Britain GM Jon Woods said, "This partnership will allow us to accelerate growth on low sugar variants faster and is the beginning of more multi-brand campaigns. It allows us to bring the whole portfolio to life." This is not Coca-Cola's "first foray into football." It already sponsors the World Cup and previously aligned with football in the U.K. through a sponsorship of the English Football League and the Coca-Cola Cup. Woods said that Coca-Cola is returning to football in the U.K. "because of the Premier League's popularity among a broad demographic." He said, "First and foremost, we want this partnership to be always-on because I want to be part of a regular conversation" (MARKETING WEEK, 9/13). CAMPAIGN LIVE's Ben Bold reported Coca-Cola released a 20-second teaser video announcing the deal and featuring 20 brands owned by the soft drink company, including the flagship Coca-Cola brand. The video also includes a reference to Coca-Cola's #CokeDunks recycling campaign, a TV ad which launches this weekend. Announcements are due between now and the end of the year "regarding most of the Premier League's current sponsorship deals, such as those with Carling and former title sponsor Barclays" (CAMPAIGN LIVE, 9/13).
