The International Olympic Committee (IOC) is ready to welcome an Indian sponsor soon as a sign of the country’s rising influence over the Olympics during a bid to host the 2036 Summer Games, according to the Economic Times.
The IOC currently boasts 15 top-tier partners who have collectively paid almost $740 million last year in cash and services, though none from India. Now, however, things might change.
During an IOC annual meeting in Mumbai last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the nation’s intent to bid for the 2036 Games.
The 111 IOC members include Nita Ambani, the wife of India’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani, who heads the Reliance Industries conglomerate. The lavish wedding of their son, Anant, made global headlines ahead of the ceremony last month.
“We would love to welcome a first new TOP sponsor from India and I am sure that this is going to happen very, very soon,” said Anne-Sophie Voumard, the IOC’s marketing director. “For us, it is certainly a country that we believe has a lot of potential, including on commercial. Its GDP is increasing and developing really, really nicely.”
Olympic sponsorship has typically relied on companies from the United States and Japan for the past 40 years. However, the IOC has at least one sponsor deal ending this year, with Japanese car maker Toyota, and several others are up for renewal. Two more Japanese sponsors, Bridgestone and Panasonic, have IOC deals expiring this year.
Interest for IOC deals is also expected from Qatar, which wants to host the 2036 Olympics in Doha, and Saudi Arabia, which recently secured a 12-year deal to host the Esport Olympic Games.
New sponsorships will start with the 2026 Winter Games in Milan and northern Italy’s ski resorts, followed by the 2028 Summer Games in Los Angeles. Leading up to the 2036 edition, the Olympic hosts include the French Alps in 2030, Brisbane, Australia in 2032, and Salt Lake City in 2034.
The International Olympic Committee has not established a specific timeframe for selecting the host of the 2036 Summer Games. They have established an updated process which allows Olympic leaders to choose a preferred candidate at any time. These exclusive negotiations can potentially lead to a confirmatory vote by IOC members without competing bids.
