E65: Coke & The Olympics

Thierry Borra spent 25 years working in sport for The Coca Cola Company, and for a large period of that time was responsible for the relationship with the Olympic Games.So what does the postponement of Tokyo 2021 mean for Coke, the IOC’s longest serving partner? How does the Olympics fit in to Coke’s marketing strategy and how do they know whether it works or not?This was an opportunity to go really deep in to the marketing landscape around the Games and to peer in to the often closed world of Coca Cola, a company that spends more money on sports rights than virtually any other, making it hugely influential across the sponsorship sector, where brands of all categories often ask, what would coke do?Thierry left Coca Cola after the Rio Games and has set up his own business Sport Matters, and I ask him what it’s like leaving Coca Cola after so long, and what advice he would have given himself on his first day.

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