US: Anheuser-Busch extends Olympic tie-up

Anheuser-Busch has renewed its sponsorship of the US Olympic team.

The US-based brewer, whose pending acquisition by InBev has provoked fears of marketing spend cuts, said late last week that it would continue as the exclusive malt beverage sponsor of the US Olympic team until 2012. Financial details of the tie-up extension were not disclosed.

Budweiser has been an Olympic supporter since 1984 when the brand was the official beer sponsor of the Olympic Games in Los Angeles. A-B said that it backs its sponsorship of the US team with "significant media buys" on NBC and affiliated networks during the Olympic Games, as well as select athlete and National Governing Body sponsorships, retail point-of-sale and promotional items in stores nationwide.

"No sporting event or property embraces the American passion for pure competition and athleticism like the US Olympic Team and the Olympic Games," said Tony Ponturo, vice president of Global media and sports marketing for A-B. "Budweiser is an American icon that is proud to support the US Olympic Team as ambassadors to the world."

"Sponsorship of the US Olympic Team provides A-B with an opportunity to reach adult beer drinkers around the globe and, at the same time, gain national and international exposure for Budweiser and the company's other brands," Ponturo added. "We'll continue to develop an association between our beer brands and the marks and designations of the US Olympic Team and US Olympic Committee in a variety of ways, which may include television, print, radio and outdoor advertising, as well as packaging, merchandising and point-of-sale materials."

Budweiser is the official international beer sponsor of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China, and is the exclusive alcohol beverage and non-alcohol malt-based beverage sponsor of the 2008 Olympic Games telecasts on NBC and its cable and Latino properties.