PyeongChang 2018 Signs Ticket Distributer -- Sponsor Spotlight

(ATR) Organizers for the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics (POCOG) have signed Korean ticketing services company Interpark as its official supporter for sales and ticket distribution.

Interpark will handle ticket sales to specific client groups as well as the general public in Korea. The company will also provide all necessary equipment, systems and personnel required to run the POCOG ticketing program.

The company has experience organizing the ticketing programs for other international sporting events, including the 2002 FIFA World Cup, 2011 IAAF world championships and this year’s Summer Universiade in Gwangju.

POCOG secretary general Yeo Hyungkoo said "it is very meaningful to have Interpark as a sponsor".

"Through its outstanding infrastructure and sales know-how, PyeongChang 2018 is striving to achieve full stadia."

Representative director of Interpark Kim Yang-sun stated "it’s an honor to be the sponsor of the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018".

"We will fully support POCOG with our extensive ticketing services experience acquired across major events."

Hublot Sponsors Premier12 'Player of the Game' Awards

The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) hosted the inaugural Premier12 baseball tournament in Tokyo, Japan, showcasing 12 of the best teams in the world in what the confederation called a "global baseball battle".

The final game of the tournament will be played Saturday, Nov. 21 at the Tokyo Dome as the United States and South Korea face off for the title.

USA’s Adam Frazier collected three hits and was named the Hublot Player of the Game for the semi-final between USA and Mexico.

Throughout the tournament, one player from each game was selected as the Player of the Game for their contributions towards their team’s win.

Swiss watch-maker Hublot joined the WBSC to sponsor the Player of the Game award, lending its name and logo to the plaque awarded to each player.

Sexwale: FIFA Should Allow National Jersey Sponsors

FIFA presidential candidate Tokyo Sexwale says world football should allow national teams to put sponsor logos on their uniforms.

Sexwale gave this opinion as part of his election manifesto on Nov. 18, expanding his efforts to replace suspended FIFA president Sepp Blatter. Other proposals in his manifesto included expanding the World Cup to more than 32 teams and the creation of an international advisory board.

Sexwale says the sponsorship proposal would allow national teams to generate more sponsorship revenue, making the proposal an option FIFA should "seriously explore".

"There is space there for much value worth millions of dollars which will be destined directly into football associations’ coffers," he said.

However, former IOC marketing and broadcast rights director Michael Payne disagrees with the proposal, telling Around the Rings it’s an "absolutely appalling idea".

"[It] would generate some revenue, but they would lose far more from FIFA’s decline in marketing revenues," Payne says, noting that national team sponsors would violate FIFA’s current sponsor exclusivity rules.

Sponsors on jerseys have been a popular practice with club football teams since the 1980s, yet FIFA has withheld from allowing the practice to spread to national clubs.

Payne chalks up Sexwale’s proposal as nothing more than a false election promise.

"It is a classic case of a politician running for office making election promises with zero understanding of marketing dynamic," Payne tells ATR.

FIFA will hold an extraordinary general assembly on Feb. 26 to elect the next president.

Written by KevinNutley

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