ITC to begin sponsoring sports events again
By Our Cortporate Bureau | 10 Dec 2004
Kolkata: After three years ITC, among the biggest corporate sponsors, is coming back into sports sponsorship with the launch of "Sunfeast Open 2005.
Announcing the launch of the Sunfeast Open, Hemant Malik, head, marketing, ITC-food business said ITC would make a comeback into sports sponsorship.
The cigarettes and hospitality major in India was counted among the biggest sports sponsors in the country till 2001. It is known to have had an annual budget exceeding Rs250 crore for sponsorships in cricket, golf, tennis, billiards and horse racing through its various cigarette brands.
Before it withdrew from sports sponsorships, ITC sponsored tournaments as a brand promotion activity through tennis and billiards for its Gold Flake, golf and horse racing for Classic and cricket for Wills. The company sponsored the Wills World Cup in 1996 on which it reportedly spent Rs40 crore.