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TOKYO – Tokyo Olympics officials said on Thursday (Manila time) that they reached a “basic agreement” with the 68 national sponsors to extend their contracts until next year to support the postponed Games.
Yoshiro Mori, chairman of the organizing committee, said in an online briefing that the new contributions “will exceed” 22 billion yen, or about 210 million dollars, to repair holes in the growing budget.
Japanese national sponsors had already contributed a record $ 3.3 billion to the local operating budget, with the new money pushing the total to more than $ 3.5 billion. This is at least twice, perhaps three times, bigger than any previous Olympiad and is powered by Dentsu Inc., the giant Japanese advertising company that is also the marketing agent for the Tokyo Games.
Toshiro Muto, executive director of the organizing committee, said Dentsu had carried out the negotiations.
“It’s not that we went through negotiations to force companies to invest,” Muto said.
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Mori also said that the companies were not “pressured.”
Mori acknowledged that many companies were facing tough economic times. It is also clear that the Tokyo Olympics have become a priority for Japan’s national government, making it difficult for companies to not renew.
“We have also heard from our partners about the difficult situation each of them faces amid the pandemic and the unprecedented economic crisis,” Mori said.
Japan’s Nikkei newspaper reported earlier this month that each of the 15 so-called “gold partners” would contribute around $ 10 million each. Some of the gold partners include household names like Canon, Fujitsu, and Mizuho Financial Group.
Nikkei is also a national sponsor along with other dailies like Asahi, Mainichi, Yomiuri, and several smaller newspapers.
Sponsors such as ANA and Japan Airlines are among those struggling during the pandemic, but they are also reportedly contributing.
Muto acknowledged that not all contributions involved cash. Some would be “in kind”, he said, providing goods and services rather than cash payments.
Organizers of the Tokyo Olympics announced earlier this week that their new budget, increased by the postponement and cost of holding the Olympics during a pandemic, had increased by $ 2.8 billion, raising the cost. official at $ 15.4 billion.
Government audits conducted in recent years have shown the total is likely to be closer to $ 25 billion. Everything but $ 6.7 billion is public money.
The University of Oxford said in a study four months ago that Tokyo is the most expensive Summer Olympiad on record.
Tokyo officials said the Olympics would cost around $ 7.5 billion when they won the 2013 International Olympic Committee bid.
Although sponsors are asked to make up part of the financial deficit. most of the cost overrun will be covered by Japanese government entities.
The postponed Olympic Games will begin on July 23, 2021, followed by the Paralympic Games on August 24.
Japan has contained COVID-19 better than most countries, and there is skepticism among the public about inviting 15,000 Olympians and Paralympians to the country.
Some 3,000 deaths attributed to COVID-19 have been reported in Japan, a country of around 125 million.
The vaccines are not expected to be widely available in Japan until March.
Add to this, tens of thousands of officials, judges, sponsors, and the media, not to mention fans from abroad, if they are allowed in. Officials are expected to decide on the numbers and exact preventive measures early next year.
A telephone survey of 1,200 participants this month by Japan’s Kyodo news agency showed that 63% want the Olympics to be postponed or canceled. The IOC and the organizers have said the Olympics will be canceled if they cannot be held this time.
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