ThaiBev inks deals with La Liga clubs
Thai Beverage (ThaiBev) has pulled off what could be the biggest set of commercial partnerships ever secured by a local company, tying down arguably the world's two best football clubs, Real Madrid and Barcelona, in three-year sponsorship deals worth mor
Seven years ago, ThaiBev became the first local company to sponsor an English football club with its Everton shirt-sponsorship deal, sparking the recent influx of Thai brands into English soccer’s Premier League. ThaiBev, the maker of Chang beer, is once again playing a pioneering role, with a move into the world’s other top league with partnerships with the two Spanish heavyweights.
ThaiBev’s simultaneous deals with the two La Liga outfits – who form what some consider the fiercest rivalry in soccer – may well be unprecedented. The fact that between them the two clubs have hoisted the Uefa (Union of European Footballs Associations) Champions League trophy – regarded as the game’s biggest prize – 13 times brings an element of uniqueness to the deals.
Sorrakit Latitham, ThaiBev’s marketing manager, said the contracts with Real Madrid and Barcelona were part of the company’s “Live Like You Mean It” campaign targeting the younger generation. Under the deals, Real Madrid is an official partner of ThaiBev in Thailand, while Barcelona is a regional partner in Southeast Asia.
“We launched our new product Chang Export at the end of last year, which received a good response from our targeted clients. Our intention is to employ the ‘Live Like You Mean It’ concept to access our customer group thoroughly. We decided to attach our brand to the world’s two most famous clubs.
“You can see the dynamism on the soccer field; nowadays you see the shirts the children wear have either Real Madrid or Barcelona on them, with the name of their playing idol.”
The company hopes the sponsorship deals with Real Madrid and Barcelona, which allow them to use the clubs’ brands in all kinds of media for advertisement purposes, will help it achieve double-digit growth domestically and internationally over the next three years, Sorrakit said.
“‘Live Like You Mean It’ is possibly our most comprehensive marketing campaign ever. We’ll implement 360-degree marketing activities to reach our customers, who love football.
“You will see our new commercials with these two clubs soon and we will start our interactive marketing campaigns in mid-March. We’ve lined up a variety of activities ranging from watching ‘El Clasico’ [derby] match between the two sides in Spain to bringing either one of the two to the country for our fans,” Sorrakit said.
