Any Japanese company still eager to become one of the top sponsors of the 2020 Olympic Games will have to cough up at least ¥15 billion (about $127.5 million) for the honor, it has been learned.
The period for the "Gold Partner" sponsorship contract will extend to the end of 2020, and the Tokyo Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games aims to raise at least ¥150 billion in revenue through the program.
Sponsors will be divided into three ranks and only one company will be selected per category, in principle.
According to a source, the second rank will be "Official Partner," which will have a floor of ¥6 billion for participating sponsors.
The rest will have to settle for the "Official Supporter" designation and will be required to pay from ¥1 billion to ¥3 billion for the title.
The minimums might turn out lower than listed, depending on the details of the contracts. Tokyo's organizers have already begun negotiating with some of the companies and could pick their first sponsor as soon as this month.
In the meantime, the Japanese Olympic Committee's sponsorship drive, which wrapped up at the end of last year, selected seven companies to be top sponsors, including Asahi Breweries Ltd., NTT Docomo Inc. and Toyota Motor Corp. Each agreed to pay a total of ¥600 million over four years.
Tokyo's organizing committee will work together with the JOC and the Japan Paralympic Committee to carry out marketing operations. Sponsors will have the right to use the Olympic logo and slogans in advertisements.
The organizing committee is gearing up efforts to gather sponsors, as the budget for the games' operation is expected to exceed the initially planned ¥300 billion.