Following a year-long delay in the commencement of the Tokyo Olympics, we can finally be spectators of this highly celebrated event, worldwide, of course from behind our screens.

The Olympics brings together the nation and the world to celebrate sports and thus gives brands and advertisers a glorious chance to connect and engage with their target audience.

As the host nation makes it easier for the fans to watch these events live, the rest of the world watches it on their screens and since post-COVID-19, the possibility of watching these games live has been completely minimized, it has increased the number of people who are watching the games virtually. This poses brands with numerous opportunities to leave an everlasting impact on their consumers through campaigns, advertisement, products etc.

The Olympics is a special attraction not just for sports enthusiasts but also holds a special place in the nation’s heart as it binds everyone together and pulls high attention, engagement and visibility to brands that are associated with it in some or another way. It is not only these factors that make The Olympics an ideal event to be linked with but also the fact that it somewhat increases the prestige and honor of the brand when it connects with a team or individual that is representing the country at the International level.

Various brands in the past have carried out campaigns around the Olympics to benefit from the attention it gets. JSW’s campaign “Rukhna Nahi Hai” in 2016 and MPL’s “Fan Bann Jaoge” campaign are amongst some of the famous campaigns that have drawn a clear association with the Olympics.

While internationally, various brands have benefited from their association with the Games,

big corporations and brands like Coca Cola, GE, Intel, Visa are direct sponsors of this event and are visible all across the event’s communication. To prevent over-commercialization, the Olympics gives only its sponsors the right to include Olympics branding into their marketing campaigns. But that doesn’t stop other brands from making the most out of this event. GoPro uploaded a video of Olympians such as U.S. snowboarder Jamie Anderson on social media before the Games. So, although GoPro couldn’t make any references to the Olympics, nothing really promotes their product more than experiencing snowboarding run through the eyes of an Olympic gold medalist.

Apple also lent 15 gold iPads and more than a dozen Apple Watches to the U.S. bobsled team’s coaching and support staff at the Olympics which helped them improve their record and review their practice sessions that in turn helped them improve their training, as stated by the coach. And just like that, Apple was promoted by an Olympic Team. Hershey’s created “gold” chocolate bars made from caramel and pretzels with the tagline “Taste the Gold” to promote the U.S. gold medalists and consumers were encouraged to post pictures on social media to increase Hershey’s reach.

Sports brands like Nike, Adidas, Reebok and Asics also release Olympic-related merch to promote their brand amidst the ongoing buzz.

Several brands have benefited from the association with this grand event, be it the sponsors or others. While fans enjoy the games, brands enjoy the attention through the right brand placement. But at the same time, these brand tactics make all types of games more inclusive and democratizes sports on a broader level. The Olympics is used as a vehicle to raise awareness about sports that are not-so-famous and athletes that have pushed through their struggles and achieved these milestones.

It is indeed a win-win situation for all.