The Olympics 2012, scheduled to kick off in London on Friday, has garnered £1 billion in sponsorships.

“Sports sponsorship is now a big business. Some very shrewd firms are investing substantial amounts. Their motives may include a splash of philanthropy but I suspect their analysts have done the arithmetic and decided this is a cost-effective way of getting their name in the public eye,” said Mr Charles Wright, Director, Wolff Olins, the global brand consultancy firm entrusted with the task of branding the Olympics for the first time in the Games’ history.

Quoting British media reports, he told Business Line over telephone from London that the recent estimates suggest that the London Olympics 2012 is getting some £1 billion in sponsorship. The Games, scheduled to conclude on August 12, are expected to generate business worth about $8-10 billion, reports said.

Asked if this branding could translate into expected business, particularly in the wake of questions marks on sponsorships of McDonald, Coke, as also Dow Chemicals, on health issues, Mr Ije Nwokorie, Managing Director, Wolff Olins, said the 2012 brand is designed to work alongside the sponsors’ brands.

“But we had no role in the selection of sponsors so (we) can’t really comment on that.”

Observing that cricket may be a “less attractive sport” to international audience than soccer, Mr Wright said 700 million people watched the 2010 FIFA World Cup Final.

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