OSAKA, Japan (Sept. 2, 2014) — Toyo Tire & Rubber Co. Ltd. has begun a series of branding initiatives in its first full season as a premium sponsor of the AC Milan soccer team.
The company's support of the team kicked off with the Aug. 30 start of the Serie A Italian professional football league's 2014-2015 season.
In April , Toyo became the first Japanese company to sign a premium sponsorship agreement with AC Milan, which the tire maker said “boasts a following of fans from all around the world.” The deal will become an important source of branding content for the tire maker as it continues to expand its business globally, Toyo said.
With its first full sponsorship season with AC Milan, Toyo said it will unveil a number of activities showcasing the soccer powerhouse. The company launched a drawing that ran Aug. 13 to 29 in which it presented official AC Milan smartphone covers to 100 winners in celebration of the start of Serie A league play. The campaign received about 1,900 entries.
Toyo said it also is planning a tour in which participating fans will attend games and provide firsthand reports of the Milan Derby with Inter Milan on Nov. 23. An effort is under way to recruit 11 Toyo Tire “reporters” for the derby.
On Dec. 14 a match between AC Milan and Napoli will be a “Toyo Tires presents” match sponsor day, with the Toyo brand on full display at San Silo Stadium in Milan, Italy, AC Milan's home venue.
Osaka-based Toyo also noted that it plans to “aggressively utilize content featuring AC Milan in its advertising material.” In addition to developing and launching a collection of original novelty items for its customers, the company said it is producing video content that will highlight AC Milan's star players.
AC Milan activities and match results also will be updated on Toyo's Facebook page and “ON and OFF THE FIELD” Tumbler page.