Continuing Simple Flying's tour of the world of Emirates' corporate sponsorship worldwide, we pick up where we left off. With sports remaining the focus of our attention, the Dubai-based mega-carrier, along with its brand, takes center stage.
Promoting the brand
As we discovered in the first part of this three-part article, regardless of whether your interest lies in sports, the arts, music, or cultural events, you don't have to look too far to find something that features Emirates branding these days.
So far, we have explored the multitude of sponsorship deals that the Dubai-based carrier enjoys with various soccer and rugby teams, tournaments, stadiums, and match officials worldwide.
In this second installment, we will look at the various other sports with which Emirates has corporate sponsorship agreements in place. In Part Three, we will cast the net wider and explore the different areas of modern life which the company uses as platforms to promote itself, its brand, and its services.
Other sports
The world of sports has traditionally been a primary target of many major corporations seeking to promote their brand. The branding of huge global companies such as Nike, Heineken, Mcdonald's, and Coca-Cola can often be seen on advertising hoardings, players' shirts, stadiums, or other endorsement platforms.
Emirates is no different from these other companies, and its brand has increasingly become synonymous with various sporting teams and events over the years.
As we continue our whistle-stop tour of the various sponsorships Emirates has forged with the sporting world, the variety and world-reaching coverage of the agreements is plain to see. From tennis to cricket, cycling to horse racing, and even golf, it is hard to escape the airline's iconic branding.
Tennis
Emirates' tennis portfolio includes some of the most high-profile events on the ATP and WTA tours, including three of the four Grand Slam tournaments.
US Open - As part of its sponsorship of the US Tennis Association (USTA), Emirates became the Official Airline of the US Open, starting in 2012. The airline's tournament involvement includes activities for fans, including tennis clinics with the sport's legendary players. The carrier has also hosted several guests in the Emirates Luxury Suite, including celebrities such as Jason Sudeikis, Olivia Wilde, Jessica Biel, and Naomi Campbell, as well as tennis greats Michael Chang, Rod Laver, Mats Wilander, and Billie Jean King.
ATP Tour - Emirates has strengthened its involvement in tennis worldwide as the 'Premier Partner' and Official Airline of the ATP Tour. As part of its agreement with the ATP Tour, first signed in 2013, the airline became the 'Official Platinum Partner' of the season-ending Nitto ATP Finals. With global marketing rights and exposure through on-court net branding at 60 tournaments worldwide, Emirates aims to engage with tennis fans worldwide.
Roland Garros - The airline is the Official Partner of the Roland Garros tournament, the premier clay tennis tournament and the second of the four annual Grand Slams. Roland Garros is our third tennis sponsorship in Europe after the Internazionali BNL d'Italia (Italian Open) was announced in 2012 and the Barcelona Open revealed in March 2013, which are now part of the ATP Tour.
As part of its five-year agreement, the Emirates branding is prominently displayed at the Centre Court Philippe-Chatrier and Suzanne-Lenglen court and on advertising panels on competition courts. It also offers a dedicated area for the general public in the tournament fan zone area.
Dubai Tennis Championships - Emirates enjoys a long-standing relationship with the Dubai Tennis Championship, the region's premier tennis event. The company has supported the tournament since its inception in 1993. The annual event is played on the hard courts of the Dubai Tennis Stadium, which has since become a magnet for people seeking entertainment in Dubai.
The two-week Dubai Tennis Championships is hosted in late February/early March, with the first week being the women's tournament and the second being the men's tournament.
Australian Open - The Emirates Grand Slam partnership with the Australian Open began in 2015, reflecting the carrier's commitment and ambition to promote Australia as a travel destination.
The Australian Open is a first-class sporting event that draws fans from all over the world to Melbourne, and millions more watch at the edge of their seats in their homes.
The agreement also includes sponsorship of the Australian Open Series, leading to this first Grand Slam event of the year. Rebranded the Emirates Australian Open Series, the airline is a partner to all five marquee events held ahead of the Australian Open - the Hopman Cup (Perth), Brisbane International, Apia International Sydney, Hobart International, and the World Tennis Challenge (Adelaide).
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Cricket
Cricket offers Emirates a strong synergy in terms of the key cricket-playing nations and its major route networks across Asia, Australasia, and the UK, providing the airline with a powerful platform to connect with fans and communities alike to increase brand awareness.
International Cricket Council - Emirates has a commercial agreement with the International Cricket Council (ICC), and all its major events, including the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup, ICC Women's Cricket World Cup, Men's T20 World Cup, Women's T20 World Cup, ICC Under 19 Cricket World Cup, ICC Men's T20 World Cup Qualifier, and the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Qualifier.
The company's partnership with the ICC also sees its branding featured on the official kit of the ICC Panel of Umpires and Referees. It has been the main sponsor of the Emirates Elite ICC Panel of Umpires and Referees since 2002.
The panel officiates all three formats of the game - Test Matches, One Day Internationals, and T20 Internationals worldwide. Together with branding that has helped the airline achieve widespread exposure to cricket fans worldwide, it also transports umpires and referees to international events as the Global Partner of the ICC.
Durham County Cricket Club - The airline's partnership with the Durham County Cricket Club began in 2010, with an agreement to become the Official Shirt Sponsor of their limited-over team, the Durham Dynamos. The deal gave the carrier naming rights to Durham's Riverside Stadium, now known as the Emirates Riverside.
Durham Dynamos are among the leading teams in the Twenty20 format of the game, which has seen a massive growth in popularity in the UK over recent years. The association with Durham Country Cricket Club provides Emirates a platform to engage cricket fans across the UK, especially in the North East of England. It is an important region for Emirates with its daily EK36 flight from Newcastle Airport.
The airline also launched the Durham Lancashire Emirates Trophy, which both Durham CCC and Lancashire CCC compete for in the English Twenty20 league.
Lancashire County Cricket Club - In 2013, Emirates signed a ten-year sponsorship deal to be the official naming rights partner of one of England's most historic and premier cricket grounds, Old Trafford. The ground-breaking naming rights partnership has helped position Emirates Old Trafford as a world-renowned sports, conference, event, and music venue, regularly attracting visitors worldwide.
The world-famous cricket ground has been the home of Lancashire County Cricket Club for over 150 years. And with the partnership, Emirates also became the shirt sponsor of Lancashire's NatWest T20 Blast team, which won the title for the first time in 2015.
Cycling
Emirates has sponsored the cycling team UAE Team Emirates since 2017, its first cycling sponsorship. The team carries the airline's name and logo on their shirts, cycling gear, and support vehicles.
Horse racing
Horse racing is a hugely important part of the culture of the United Arab Emirates, and the involvement of Emirates in the 'sport of kings' is evident.
Dubai World Cup Carnival - The airline is the official carrier of the Dubai World Cup Carnival which culminates with the world's richest horse race – the Dubai World Cup. The carnival runs from January through March each year at the prestigious Meydan Racecourse, designed to host world-class horse racing.
Each night of racing features different events, but on the penultimate day of racing, known as Super Saturday, the carrier partners with Meydan for a night of races for many of the horses looking to compete in the Dubai World Cup.
Races - The company is regularly expanding its portfolio of major horse races and meetings across the globe, which includes the world-renowned Melbourne Cup.
Dubai World Cup - As title sponsor, Emirates has contributed to the Dubai World Cup evolving into one of the world's top racing challenges that draw the attention of millions of enthusiasts around the globe.
The meeting traditionally takes place on the last Saturday of March and is one of the top 5 horse races in the world. Welcoming over 80,000 race-goers to the event, the Dubai World Cup attracts a global audience and is one of the region's leading sporting and social events.
Godolphin Stables - The airline's partnership with Godolphin has helped turn the Dubai-based horseracing stable into one of the teams to beat worldwide. Godolphin is the global horseracing entity owned by the Maktoum family, named in honor of the Godolphin Arabian, one of the three founding stallions of the modern thoroughbred.
Established in 1992, the stable is renowned for excellence and has become the world's foremost international racing organization, winning over 250 Group One races in 12 countries. As part of its sponsorship agreement with Godolphin, the Emirates 'Fly Better' logo is displayed on Godolphin jockeys' blue silks alongside staff clothing, horse blankets, and transport vehicles.
Golf
With major golf tournaments attracting global television audiences running into the many millions, the sport has become an attractive platform by which Emirates can spread brand awareness. Traditionally perceived as drawing more affluent sections of society who play and watch golf, the sport offers a prime arena for the airline to promote its services.
European Tour - The Tour features some of the best players in golf and hosts events in Europe and worldwide. The airline has been the 'Official Airline Partner' of the European Tour for over ten years, and the company supports 14 events on the international schedule and the 'Race to Dubai.'
Hong Kong Open - Emirates is an official partner of the UBS Hong Kong Open, one of the European Tour's marquee Asian golf events. The Hong Kong Open attracts some of the best players globally and provides an excellent platform for Emirates to connect with the international golf audience.
DP World Tour Championship - The airline's continued support for the European Tour has seen it renew our sponsorship of the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai. The US$8 million DP World Tour Championship, a Rolex Series event at Jumeirah Golf Estates in November, hosts the top 50 golfers on the European Tour's Race to Dubai, offering one of the largest tournament first prizes for the sport – US$3 million.
The event is the grand finale of a season-long competition spanning 44 tournaments in 28 countries, which also crowns the No. 1 European Tour Golfer with a bonus pool of USD 5 million for the top 5 players, including US$2 million for the winner.
Next time...
In the final part of this series, we shall explore the myriad of sporting events in the Emirates corporate sponsorship portfolio that we are yet to examine, as well as the different cultural, arts, and commercial events that have seen the airline's support over the years.
All these will be scrutinized next time in 'A Guide Through The World Of Emirates' Corporate Sponsorships - Part 3' - coming soon to Simple Flying.
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