Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) Appoints Octagon Marketing and Sponsorship Sales Agency

The Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) today announced the appointment of global sports marketing agency Octagon as its worldwide marketing advisor and sponsorship sales agency.  The Octagon appointment represents the first time CONI has retained an agency to develop, market and sell sponsorship opportunities to multi-national corporations.

Octagon, the sports and entertainment marketing agency of The Interpublic Group (NYSE:IPG), will primarily focus its efforts on behalf of CONI on global marketers based in North America and the Asia/Pacific region.  Octagon will also assist Publitalia, the advertising agency of Mediaset Group TV Networks, on marketing packages to Italian and European based corporations. 

The sponsorship packages provide marketers opportunities to associate their brands and products with CONI in Italy in conjunction with the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, the 2009 Mediterranean Games and the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games.  Sponsorships are available across all product categories with the exception of apparel.  CONI’s mission to create value for Italian sport encompasses 45 sports federations, 15 associated disciplines and 17 national agencies of sport promotion representing a combined eight million people. 

“The Olympic Games are sport’s single largest catalyst for change in the world today,” said Bob Heussner, Senior Vice President and Head of Games Marketing for Octagon.  “This represents an unequalled opportunity for Olympic bodies like CONI and their corporate sponsors. 

“As was evidenced during Torino 2006 and the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Italy is a passionate sporting nation, and CONI is providing brands an unprecedented opportunity to engage consumers by tapping into their devotion to their national teams,” said Heussner.  “With Top 10 finishes in the medal counts at both the 2004 Summer Games and 2006 Winter Olympics, the Italian Olympic Team’s success enhances the marketing opportunities for corporations aligned with and supporting CONI’s mission,” he said. 

Octagon is uniquely qualified to identify and develop opportunities for Olympic bodies and corporations to build partnerships based on a commitment to achieve mutually beneficial objectives.  Over the past two decades encompassing a combined nine Summer and Winter Games, Octagon has provided strategic planning for corporate sponsors, local organizing committees and bid committees.  At the 2004 Summer Games in Athens, Octagon represented more corporate sponsors and athletes combined than any other sports marketing agency. 

In preparation for the Beijing 2008 Games, Octagon is working with LOC and TOP sponsors and represents the Chinese and Swedish Olympic Committees plus several Chinese sports federations.  Octagon is also working with CONI on Casa Italia, its VIP hospitality center in Beijing during the 2008 Games.