The Olympics Games and the host country have already gotten sponsors and suppliers, like Coca-Cola. Most of the time, the official suppliers are also the sponsors. There is another type called partners, which is about the same as sponsors.
China is a country with a low average income and is considered backward compared to the past host countries. The recent Sydney Games had shown China that hosting the Games will get a good reputation and make money.
The host country’s organizing committee will get businessmen to participate. China is currently planning its budget for the 2008 Games as all the host countries had high budgets to host the Games. China can also afford it, as its economy had been doing well in recent years. But other Provinces will be unhappy if the Central Government increases Beijing’s budget for the Games.
So, the organizing committee thought of a way to solve its budget problem. Getting lots of sponsors.
Basically, all major State-owned enterprises, Hong Kong and Macau tycoons have donated to the committee. Of course, China does give them tax subsidies in exchange for their donations.
As China and Asia’s No. 1 super tycoon, the committee had wanted to get Feng Yu to donate a long time ago. But because Tai Hua Holdings had donated a large amount, they are embarrassed to contact him again.
Zhao Yan finally got the opportunity to meet Feng Yu, and he will not let the opportunity slip.
“Donation? Didn’t Tai Hua Holdings donate?” Feng Yu remembered Zhong Qingxian had told him that Tai Hua Holdings had donated to the committee much earlier.
“Huh? Yes. But we are still short of funds. That’s why I hope Manager Feng can donate a bit more.” Zhao Yan’s face turned red with embarrassment for asking him to donate again.
“Oh… don’t you all have official sponsors? We can donate slightly more if you all can appoint us as the official sponsors.”
“How much is slightly more?” Zhao Yan asked.
Feng Yu laughed. “Chief Zhao, I will discuss with Zhong Qingxian first and give you an answer. But don’t worry. I will contribute to our country’s sports!”
Zhao Yan is overjoyed. “I will represent our organizing committee to thank you.”
…….
“Old Zhong, how much did our Tai Hua Holdings donated to the Olympics Games? Are we the top donator? 1 billion RMB?”
1 billion RMB should be the top organization’s donation for all the past Games. No companies have ever donated more than 100 million USD in the past.
Feng Yu remembered that Hong Kong and Macau Tycoons’ top donation and the sponsor is only around 80 million USD in his previous life. But the total donations by the tycoons are more than a few billion USD.
In Feng Yu’s previous life, China had raised close to 50 billion USD for the Beijing Olympics. The government budgeted 42 billion USD but ended up exceeding it by 1 billion. After the games ended, the new stadiums and sports arenas are worth more than 45 billion USD. This means the country had not made any losses.
The basic infrastructures built for the Beijing games include airports, roads, subways, etc., and it cost around 30 billion USD. These are what Beijing and the Central Government are going to build in the future. If they are not hosting the games, it will also be built in the future. But it will not be built at the same time.
Just Wind and Rain Consulting’s investment in gold futures alone had made lots of money for Feng Yu every week. His investments in the US IT-related companies are also doing well. He can basically do nothing and spend the rest of his life counting money, and no one can exceed his wealth.
If China is going to host the Olympics Games, it must be spectacular and demonstrate its strength to the rest of the world. China has risen and has more influence internationally. Another reason is China has always been prideful for being a strong country since ancient times. Past Olympics Games always have many issues, and nothing must go wrong when held in China.
Now, China is going to host the Games, and the organizing committee realized that it is costly to host a perfect Olympics Games. Of course, China can earn back its investments in other areas. It can continue to bring in additional income in the future.
Just the tourism receipts is a lot, let alone other sectors.
“Old Zhong, check with all our subsidiaries and see how much more they can donate. If they cannot donate now, they can do it in annual installments. We must raise the benchmark of sponsorships to the highest in the world!”
Those TOP sponsors did not sponsor more money, but they get the most airtime. This is because they have connections with the International Olympics Committee.
Feng Yu cannot do anything about this as they had signed contracts before the games started. But he can humiliate the International Olympics Committee by showing them their ‘TOP’ sponsors had only donated a small amount and are only ‘spare changes’ compared to his donations.
“Manager Feng, how much are you going to donate?”
“Prepare 100 million USD for each of our brands. If it is not enough, we will increase further. I will donate more under my name and let the International Olympics Committee know that their sponsors are too stingy!”
Zhong Qingxian is speechless. Feng Yu will be pissing the International Olympics Committee off, but it’s also a good thing. Those international committee members will not dare to interfere in the Beijing Games.
Many people are unhappy with the International Olympics Committee as they are paying themselves highly. The members get an average of more than 1 million RMB, and even the ordinary members are getting more than 500,000 RMB annually. Their jobs are also very simple.
The TOP sponsorships and 90% of the broadcasting fees will be given to the host country’s organizing committee. That’s why if the ‘TOP’ sponsors sponsored more money, China would get a bigger share.
Suppose those ‘TOP’ sponsors had sponsored lesser than China’s official sponsors. In that case, the International Olympics Committee will be embarrassed, and China’s organizing committee can raise an issue about this.
“Manager Feng, are you sure you want to do this?”
“What’s wrong with that? I am donating money. Do I need their permission?” Feng Yu hates such ‘traditions’ where you cannot donate more than the leaders. Furthermore, the International Olympics Committee cannot do anything to him!
“Alright. This should not be a problem. But I need to check with the different brands first.” Zhong Qingxian needs to consider the company profits first, as not everyone is as rich as Feng Yu.
“No problem. The more we donate, the more we can save for our country. If those foreigners cannot afford to sponsor so much, they can give up.”
Translator’s notes:
The Olympic Partners (TOP) program is the highest level of Olympic sponsorship, granting category-exclusive marketing rights to the Summer, Winter, and Youth Olympic Games to a select group of global partners.
The program – which was created by the IOC in 1985 – attracts some of the best-known multinational companies in the world. Through their support, Olympic partners provide the foundation for the staging of the Olympic Games and help athletes from over 200 nations participate on the world’s biggest sporting stage.
