By Rick Horrow and Karla Swatek
July 27, 2012
Just days into the London Olympics, the International Olympic Committee already is boasting about record-breaking revenue figures for the 2014 and 2016 Winter and Summer Olympics in Sochi, Russia, and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The IOC has generated $3.6 billion in broadcasting revenue for the 2014-16 Olympic quadrennial, and IOC President Jacques Rogge expects the total to exceed $4 billion. Additionally, TOP sponsorship revenue for the upcoming quadrennial likely will top $1 billion for the first time. Even 2017-20 sponsorship sales are off to a strong start, with the TOP program having seven sponsors committed for $720 million.
A majority of the revenue already generated by the IOC comes from the TV deal signed with NBC last fall. With arguably the strictest ambush marketing rules in all of sports, sponsors feel comfortable making multi-million dollar investments with the Olympics.
