Audi returns as ICC presenting partner; IsoWhey backs pro-cycling team; and more
28 Jan 2016 06:02am
> Audi to reprise International Champions Cup naming rights in 2016
> Opera Australia partnerships boss moves to AWO
> IsoWhey takes title rights at Australian pro-cycling outfit
> Volleyball Australia adds more corporate backers
> Sponsors announced for Australia Day celebrations in Parramatta, Darling Harbour
Audi to reprise International Champions Cup naming rights
Audi will return as presenting sponsor of the International Champions Cup in 2016, with football giants Tottenham and Juventus set to play at the MCG in the tournament's second edition.
The ICC, a four-team football tournament operated by DDD, attracted 221,000 people across three games in its first Australian edition this year. Affiliate tournaments are also held in the US, China, Mexico, Canada, Italy and the UK.
Audi splurged on a
large-scale leveraging strategy for the tournament, appointing creative agency Tongue, and the luxury auto brand has already begun work on next year's activations.
A-League side Melbourne Victory will also participate in the ICC, while a third European team will be added to the bill next year. No other returning sponsors have yet been announced. Sponsors for the inaugural tournament included
Telstra, Samsung, CrownBet, Nike and Tag Heuer.
The ICC is operated locally by The Legacy Agency, owned by Melbourne Storm chair Bart Campbell, and TEG (formerly Nine Live). TLA and TEG hold the local rights on a four-year deal in partnership with tournament owner RSE Ventures.
The
Nine Network holds broadcast rights for the ICC, while the Victorian Government has secured
hosting rights until at least 2018.
Both Juventus and Tottenham have toured Australia in recent years – Juve played a
Telstra-sponsored A-League All Stars side in 2014, while Spurs played
Spurs played Sydney FC earlier this year.
The return of the ICC follows last week's announcement that
Destination NSW will partner with Arsenal for an Australian tour in 2017.
Opera Australia partnerships boss moves to AWO
Helen Hall, Opera Australia's director of corporate partnerships and events, has taken up a new position as head of development at the Australian World Orchestra.
Hall joined OA last year, leading the company's eight-strong corporate partnerships and events team. She takes up the role of head of development at the AWO, a new position for the orchestra.
IsoWhey takes title rights at Australian pro-cycling outfit
Health supplements brand IsoWhey has signed on as co-naming rights sponsor at the Australian professional cycling team, Avanti, from 2016.
Named for the New Zealand bike-maker, Avanti competes on the UCI Continental circuit, the second-tier below the UCI World Tour. The team will be known as Avanti IsoWhey Sports for the 2016-17 season.
IsoWhey is an existing sponsor of AFL side Melbourne and is set to join the NRL's New Zealand Warriors as a supply partner from next year.
In other changes at the team, Toyota will replace Renault as official vehicle supplier and sports clothing brand, Scody, will join as a sponsor.
Europcar Australia has already been announced as a sponsor.
IsoWhey is owned by BioCeuticals, itself a subsidiary of ASX-listed health giant, Blackmores.
Volleyball Australia adds more corporate backers
Volleyball Australia has enjoyed further commercial successes in the lead-up to Rio 2016, adding two new sponsors.
National entertainment chain Event Cinemas will support a full suite of VA events from next season, beginning with the Gold Coast-based Beach Tour in late January.
Radiology services firm Western Imaging, meanwhile, will sponsor VA's Manly Beach Volleyfest in March. That event will feature 14 international teams and is an important lead-up to the 2016 Olympics.
The two partnerships follow
three deals brokered by VA last month. The peak beach and indoor volleyball federation recently appointed former Sydney Kings general manager
Rod Harys as its first chief commercial officer.
Australia Day celebrations in Parramatta, Darling Harbour announce partners
Lotto will become the major sponsor of Australia Day activities in Sydney's iconic Darling Harbour in a deal the event's operator says is its "most significant" ever for the event.
The NSW Government-owned Lotteries Corporation, operated by Tatts Group, will be featured throughout Darling Harbour's 'Australia Day Spectacular', a free event which runs for ten hours on the public holiday.
Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority is the managing body for Darling Harbour. The precinct attracts more than 26 million visitors annually, making a $800 million contribution to the local economy.
Meanwhile, Krispy Kreme, Banana Boat and Masterfoods will partner with the Parramatta City Council's own Australia Day celebrations.
The partnerships were brokered by sales agency Sponsorship IQ, which is working with the Council on a long-term commercial strategy.
