Russian Cup's Strange Sponsorship Story
Earlier this week, Bridgestone put out a press release that it would be title sponsor of the Russian Cup during the 2011-2012 season, with the event being named the “Bridgestone-Russian Cup.” You can still see a number of press reports like this one at tirebusiness.com on the deal. Just a few days after that story, the Russian Football Union, which manages the Russian Cup, issued a press release stating that competitor, Pirelli, will be title sponsor of the Russian Cup. Obviously, we can't have both companies claiming to be the title sponsor of the Russian Cup in SponsorPitch's Sponsor Index, so we got to wondering who really is the title sponsor of the Russian Cup?
Today Bridgestone issued this statement clarifying the dispute.
Tokyo (July 19, 2011) —Bridgestone Corporation (Bridgestone) announced on July 15, 2011 that the Bridgestone brand would be the title sponsor of the 2011/2012 season of the Russian Cup held by the Russian Football Union (RFU). However, on the same day we made this announcement (local time), the RFU announced that it had selected a company other than Bridgestone as title sponsor of the event.
Our announcement on July 15, 2011 was based on an agreement in good faith between an agent of the RFU and Bridgestone's advertising agency, and also a July 4, 2011 announcement by the RFU that the official name of the tournament would be "Bridgestone-Cup of Russia on football".
While Bridgestone is not convinced to the RFU's decision to name another company as title sponsor of the 2011/2012 season Russian Cup, Bridgestone came to a decision that it cannot continue its role as the title sponsor. Bridgestone will, however, continue to explore opportunities in Russia to promote and enhance our brand.
So there you have it. More $ for other sponsorship opportunities in Russia. Polish up those proposals.
#newstag
