Tokyo 2020: How Sponsors Can Still Strike Gold

On the sponsorship front, Japanese companies had stumped up a record-breaking $3.3bn in fees while leading international firms like Visa, Coca-Cola and P&G had reaffirmed their faith in the Olympics as a global marketing platform. Underlining the event’s ability to keep evolving its proposition, digitally-driven brands including Airbnb, Intel and Alibaba had also committed to the cause. As for TV revenues, US broadcaster NBC’s $1.25bn airtime sales was further evidence that brands continue to value an association with the Olympic ethos.

Like so many events, Tokyo 2020 was forced to postpone because of the pandemic and is now being held from July 23-August 8. The fact it is taking place at all is a minor miracle given the logistical challenges involved. In the case of sponsors, many were required to sign contract extensions and stump up extra cash. For TV broadcasters, travel firms, hotels and organisers, it’s unlikely they have ever faced such a complex and fast-moving set of circumstances.

All of this, however, is arguably less of an issue than the changed mood among the local population. In 2019, the people of Japan were buzzing with excitement about the upcoming Olympics. Now they have serious reservations about hosting such a large scale event amid a pandemic. At time of writing, a fourth wave of Covid-19 was engulfing the nation. To put it in perspective, around 80% of the country’s 12000 Covid-19 deaths have occurred in the last four months.

According to the FT, some sponsors are supporting calls for a delay, until later in 2021. However the government is insistent that the event must keep to its current schedule. While mindful of the continued health risk posed by the virus, the authorities are determined to avoid the commercial fallout and continued social/political uncertainty that would be triggered by another postponement. Presumably they are also conscious of the upheaval that a further delay would cause for athletes, currently in the final stages of their training for the event. 

Assuming the Games go ahead on the specified dates, the big question for sponsors is how they respond to local unrest, which has included large numbers of volunteers dropping out and protests outside stadia. Here are just a few key observations about how they might handle this unprecedented situation, where billions of dollars have been sunk into an event that locals no longer want:

Prioritise Sensitive Messaging: Above all, sponsors will need to deliver a communications approach that doesn’t sell too hard. There’s no question that overtly pushing products and services is going to play badly among audiences that are more concerned about the impact of the pandemic than the Tokyo 2020 medals table. The good news, of course, is that many brands have already been doing this for a year – so they already have an idea of the tone required. Visa, for example, quickly switched gear when it learned the Games were to be postponed by a year. P&G, meanwhile, has doubled down on the family and inclusion-based messaging that has worked so well for the brand in recent years. Above all, expect brands to go big on ‘we’re all in this together’ messaging – a good example, perhaps, being the Athletes For Good charitable initiative.

Amplify Athlete Stories: People may be split over the wisdom of hosting the event, but very few people are inclined to criticise the incredible Olympians and Paralympians pursuing their dreams and ambitions. The window is so short, the opportunities so few, that it’s only right that athletes seize their chance to compete. And audiences are generally quick to embrace this determination. Most Olympic sponsors, including Intel and Coca-Cola have athlete endorsement relationships – and this is the moment to really push them. And maybe there is scope to run schemes that support athletes – like Airbnb’s new travel grant programme. What’s certain is that Tokyo 2020 will introduce the world to new sporting heroes, at a time when people need their spirits lifted.

Adopt A Proactive PR Stance: Some media outlets are going to focus on the negatives in the run up to Tokyo 2020 and during the Games. Images of demonstrations, stadia with no international visitors, general Covid-19 commentary (eg athletes/spectators who test positive) are all likely to feature. The best way to counter this is to try and get ahead of the news agenda with some positive storytelling – as Nike did with its super sustainable Olympic Games collection. This might involve opening up channels with media outlets to ensure they have access to interesting content assets. Or it might mean pursuing a content marketing-led strategy via social media and in-house platforms. There’s no question that Olympics host broadcaster OBS, working with various partners around the world, is going to deliver some spectacular footage of the event, so the job for sponsors will be to help that upbeat narrative dominate. 

One point of interest is that the Olympics prohibits any form of politicised gestures, so it is unlikely to experience the kind of debate taking place in the run up to Euro 2020, with players ‘taking the knee’ before games.

Embrace The Olympics’ internationalism: A Japan-based Olympics was always regarded as a great opportunity for brands to get under the skin of one of the world’s most important economic markets. But even if it doesn’t deliver as much domestic value as planned, sponsors can still anticipate strong exposure in other territories. The reservations being expressed by the people of Tokyo will not be shared by people sitting on their sofas in the UK, US or China. So there is little to stop sponsors continuing to roll out local activation plans (though they may now be attempting to do so on reduced marketing budgets). As long as sponsors get their tone of messaging right, then audiences around the world may view Tokyo 2020 as exactly the cathartic emotional release they need right now. Some clues will be available to sponsors during the upcoming Euro 2020 event.

Innovate Around Hospitality And Competitions: With international visitors unable to attend Tokyo 2020, hospitality and competition-based activations have clearly been adversely affected. So the only real solution is to try and come up with events and activities on home soil. The UK is opening up right now, so it might still be possible to organise smaller scale events that tap into the spirit of the Olympics. A live stream into a cinema, maybe, with refreshments. A big screen event at one of the UK’s sports venues. Clearly, there are still limitations on what can be done, but June 21 (UK ‘freedom day’) might extend options. 

Leave A Japanese Legacy: The Japanese people will be experiencing a mix of anger, disappointment and fear right now. Both international and domestic sponsors need to make it clear that they understand what the Japanese are going through and do everything they can to respect their concerns (short of cancelling the event). Most importantly, sponsors need to think about what their Tokyo 2020 legacy will be. When they pack up and move on to Beijing 2022 and Paris 2024, what will they do to prove that the Japanese are still in their thoughts? What can they leave behind that will help the Japanese use the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games as a launch pad to build back better after Covid-19?

Final Thought

One positive to come out of Tokyo 2020 has been sponsor loyalty to the Olympic cause. Despite facing serious financial pressures of their own, brands stayed on board for the rescheduled event and are already queuing up for future editions. Paris 2024, for example, has 50% of its sponsorship programme secured already and is on course to have two-thirds of its revenue target by the end of 2021. All of which suggests that Covid-19 has not snuffed out the Olympic flame.