Sponsorships, Ads, and Cultural Impact of the 2024 Paris Olympics
The 2024 Paris Olympics featured a blend of new opportunities and approaches in terms of sponsorships, advertising, and cultural influence that was absorbed around the world. Arguably the second most memorable aspect of the Olympic Games, besides the events and athletes themselves, is the advertising and sponsorship opportunities that accompany them.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) operates on a four-tier sponsorship system: Worldwide Olympic Partners, Olympic Premium Partners, Olympics Official Partners, and Olympic Official Supporters. Data collected by ISPO journalist, Lars Becker, states that 470 million euros from the total 2024 Paris Olympic budget of 4.4 billion euros are from partnerships with top sponsors alone. Some notable, long-running TOP Worldwide Olympic Partners include Airbnb, Panasonic, Samsung, Toyota, and Visa. This year, Toyota and Visa found themselves among the top advertisers, according to Saleah Blancaflor from Adweek. Toyota assumed the number one spot reaching 49 million viewers and Visa at number ten with 40 million viewers.
Although Samsung was not listed among the top advertisers regarding viewership, they did achieve large exposure online for their contribution of $200,000 in technology. Samsung Newsroom dove into the deeper intent behind this decision saying, “To bring fans closer to the action than ever before, Samsung installed more than 200 Galaxy S24 Ultra smartphones on the 85 athlete boats taking part in the Opening Ceremony.”
Perhaps the most notable partner Becker noted was the first joint TOP partnership with Coca-Cola/Mengniu that have an estimated sponsorship payment of three billion dollars from 2021 to 2032. It’s no secret that these sponsorships come at a hefty price, but there are incentives to partnering with the IOC. Official Olympic sponsors not only receive the rights to use the iconic Olympic rings and flame, but they can also see their products and services used at the Games by athletes, vendors, and spectators alike.
This year’s Summer Games generated record-breaking Olympic and Paralympic ad revenue, with Saleah Blancaflor from Adweek stating, “At the end of July, NBCUniversal reported it delivered the highest Olympic and Paralympic ad revenue in history, securing more advertisers than the Rio and Tokyo Olympics combined, with nearly $500 million coming from first-time sponsors.”
TV screens were lit across the globe as the opening ceremony attracted an average of 13.7 million viewers, with 60% on linear TV and 40% streaming, according to AdImpact. AdImpact also noted that the closing ceremony attracted an average viewership of 14.8 million viewers. According to page 11 of the IOC Marketing Media Guide, the Olympic Broadcasting Service produced over 11,000 hours of content, including 3,800 hours of live events, using AI, drones, and advanced camera systems to enhance the viewing experience.
Many long standing sponsorships came to an end after the 2024 Paris Olympics that will surely open new doors for emerging brands at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. For example, Panasonic's 37-year partnership and Toyota's 10-year partnership concluded after this summer's Games, as analyzed again by Becker. As TOP Worldwide Olympic Partners, the departure of Toyota and Panasonic will offer opportunities for brands in mobility and electronics, two of the most competitive sectors.
According to Ilyse Liffreing from the Current, NBCUniversal, the current media rights holder in the U.S. of the Olympic Games until 2032, has expanded beyond the traditional satellite-viewing format viewers have known from the past. Liffreing states that NBCUniversal “streamed all Olympics content on Peacock and opened up the platform to programmatic ads”. This paved the way for the emergence of new Olympic advertisers, with 70% being new brands to the Games on Peacock.
Despite the significant shift in brands advertising during the Games, the advertisements consistently followed a common theme, highlighting the joy of sports, perseverance in overcoming challenges, and the inspiration drawn from the world’s greatest athletes. Some notable ads featured during the 2024 Paris Olympics included: Omega’s “Official Timekeeper” campaign, Dick’s Sporting Goods “Big Moments” campaign, Lily’s “One Body” campaign, and Uber’s “On Our Way” campaign.
Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games | OMEGA
Parisian culture was intricately woven throughout various aspects of the 2024 Olympic Games, including the Opening Ceremony, event locations, decorations, and even the medals themselves. Viewers could immerse themselves in French culture by simply turning on their televisions, as the events spanned across popular venues in Paris, such as the Château de Versailles, the Grand Palais, the Seine River, and the Eiffel Tower stadium. Many venues carried historical and cultural significance that brought a new level of tradition and heart to the modern Games.
Julia Webster Ayuso from Sotheby’s discussed a particularly unique example of how Parisian culture and the Olympics were united. She discussed a sculpture built in honor of skateboarding’s Olympic debut saying, “To celebrate skateboarding’s recent inclusion at the Olympic Games, the Centre Pompidou has invited French artist Raphaël Zarka to create a ‘skateable’ sculpture for the vast Place Georges-Pompidou in front of the museum.” One of the most remarkable instances of Parisian culture in the Summer Games was the incorporation of salvaged iron from the Eiffel Tower in the Olympic medals which was crafted by the Monnaie de Paris, according to Ayuso.
The insurgence of new brands in the 2024 Paris Olympics left an undeniable impact on revenue expectations for the upcoming Games. The exodus of some of the largest sponsors will usher in the potential for larger brands to claim their spot in 2028 Los Angeles Games, or rather the possibility of a revenue loss as sponsors try to fill the large, long-standing shoes of brand giants. Besides the anticipation of the commercial aspect of the Games, the French showed great detail throughout the Cultural Olympiad leaving the 2028 Los Angeles Games a challenge to exceed in true competitive, Olympic fashion.