Business of Sport
FIFA seal SWC ticket deal
2011-11-01 11:30
Zurich - FIFA announced another improved
Soccer World Cup deal on Tuesday after selling the rights to market corporate
tickets at the 2018 and 2022 tournaments for $300 million (€219 million)
to current partner MATCH Hospitality.
FIFA said it would also get
a share of MATCH's profits on high-end ticket sales for the 2018 World
Cup in Russia, and Qatar in 2022. The deal also covers Confederations
Cup and Women's World Cup tournaments from 2017-23.
The deal was
announced days after FIFA revealed it sold $1.85 billion (€1.3 billion)
in broadcast rights for 2018-2022 in the United States, Australia,
Canada and the Caribbean. It previously clinched $1.7 billion (€1.2
billion) in broadcast sales covering the Middle East and parts of Asia
and Latin America.
FIFA also extended its contract last week with
second-tier sponsor Anheuser-Busch InBev for the Budweiser beer brand
through 2022. The value was not disclosed.
MATCH paid $240 million for hospitality rights to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and 2014 event in Brazil.
It acknowledged heavy losses in South Africa, reported to be almost $50 million, but predicted returning to profit in Brazil.
"MATCH
Hospitality delivered a successful hospitality programme in 2010
despite the very challenging economic situation influencing this
particular industry at the time," FIFA's marketing director Thierry Weil
said in a statement. "FIFA has renewed and extended with a company and
partner that brings together the most experienced team in the
hospitality industry."
The company licenses sales to agents who have exclusive rights in national markets.
MATCH
Hospitality is majority owned by England-based brothers Jaime and
Enrique Byrom from Mexico, who have sold World Cup tickets for FIFA
since the 1980s.
Shareholders include Japanese advertising agency
Dentsu and Swiss marketing agency Infront Sports and Media, whose
president and chief executive Philippe Blatter is a nephew of FIFA president Sepp Blatter.
FIFA said last week that it chose Infront
after a tendering process to handle World Cup broadcast sales across 26
Asian territories including China, India and Indonesia.