The decision by a number of leading World Cup sponsors – Sony, Adidas, Visa, Coca-Cola and Hyundai-Kia – to express concern publicly about allegations surrounding the election of Qatar as host of the event in 2022 has added a new dimension to the developing crisis facing Fifa, world football’s governing body.
In the final days leading up to a World Cup in Brazil, sponsors would expect to be maximising the return on their investment by fine-tuning promotional and hospitality programmes, not moving into crisis communications mode and being forced to defend their partnerships. Companies have invested hundreds of millions of dollars; for many it is the largest single global marketing initiative they undertake. With Fifa’s declared principles of integrity, ethics and fair play being brought into question, sponsors are fearing a backlash against their own brands.
Neither Fifa nor its corporate partners can afford a continued slow release of revelations. The doomsday scenario for the companies is that the situation is allowed to drag on, turning one of the most powerful sports partnerships toxic. Fifa already has its hands full dealing with the constant threat of match fixing, and is now being accused of turning a blind eye to the biggest fix of all: the choice of who gets to host its main event.