Expect more product placement at Olympics, says IOC

Moroadi Cholota with Hawks in Bloemfontein. 
File: President Cyril Ramaphosa addresses the nation.
Moroadi Cholota with Hawks in Bloemfontein. 
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The Olympics is set to feature more and more high-profile product placement in a major departure from the past when brands were kept away from the sport, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) said Wednesday.  
The Paris Olympics, which wrap up on Sunday, have been notable for the prominent branding opportunities given to French luxury giant LVMH and phone maker Samsung.  
“It’s really the direction we want to go in,” Anne-Sophie Voumard, managing director for television and marketing at the IOC, told reporters on Wednesday. 
“We want to remain very, very unique in the sense that we are a property where there is no (advertising) visibility on the field of play. 
“But we want to work with our partners to enable them to integrate their products in the most organic way into the delivery of the Games… It’s a conscious and desired direction and we will have changes in the next Games in this area,” she added.  
The IOC has long had a lucrative corporate sponsorship programme with brands such as Toyota, Coca-Cola and Visa. 
But no advertising has been allowed on sports fields or at venues, depriving the Switzerland-based IOC of extra revenue. 
During the July 26-August 11 Paris Olympics, LVMH-owned Louis Vuitton is highly visible during the podium presentations when trays with its branding are used to carry the medals. 
The company’s logo and trunks also featured during the opening ceremony, including in a lengthy video segment. 
In another innovation in Paris, a Samsung flip phone is carried to winning athletes as they stand on the podium so that they can take a selfie.  
“Athletes are not allowed to bring personal belongings or phones onto the field of play,” Voumard explained. “By partnering with Samsung, we’re able to capture that very unique moment for them.” 
Coca-Cola also succeeded in placing golden bottles with some athletes during the July 26 opening ceremony along the River Seine. 
Michael Payne, a former head of IOC marketing, told AFP last week that the IOC would face a delicate balancing act in finding opportunities for its sponsors, as well as those that team up with host cities.
“The direction of stylish sponsor product placement may not be wrong but needs exceptionally careful management,” he told AFP.
He said LVMH “got a massive free global ad” during the opening ceremony and “other partners are all going to be asking, how did that work?” 
Voumard added that the IOC was still searching for its first premium sponsor from India.
“We would love to welcome a first new top sponsor from India. I’m sure that this is going to happen very soon,” she said.
By Adam Plowright