Tale of 2 cities: Olympics sponsors in Pyeongchang and Tokyo
SEOUL, Korea, Republic Of — The Winter Olympics coming to South Korea in February offer an example of the Olympian efforts often required to meet corporate sponsorship goals. Tokyo tells a different story: The coffers are already overflowing for the 2020 Summer Games.
It’s a tale of two cities and two Olympics — winter and summer.
Pyeongchang is a little-known destination in one of South Korea’s poorest provinces. It is the ‘little town that could,’ bidding twice unsuccessfully for the Winter Olympics before winning on its third try. A final push enabled it to reach its sponsorship target of 940 billion won ($830 million) in September, with just five months to go.
Tokyo is an established global capital, and the Summer Games usually generate more excitement — and more money. Organizers have raised 300 billion yen ($2.7 billion) in sponsorship, twice any previous Olympics. International Olympic Committee Vice-President John Coates describes it as a remarkable achievement.