Tomorrow at 6 PM Kenyan time (1500H GMT), Arsenal Football Club will be hosting fellow Londoners Fulham at its Emirates Stadium. If you are a soccer fan you’ll want to keep time. If you just love the tech articles on Techweez then this is where you come in: Huawei. The Chinese company has entered into a partnership with the English club that will see it become the official smartphone partner. The partnership which was announced today will be made official before that match with Fulham in front of the club’s loyal home fanbase and the millions watching from around the world.
Huawei’s partnership with Arsenal will last through to the 2015-2016 season and will see Arsenal players used by Huawei to market its handsets in the United Kingdom and the world over. Huawei will also benefit from Arsenal’s huge global appeal and tap into its marketing database as well as get featured prominently on Arsenal FC’s digital and social media platforms and during matches.
Many technology companies and brands are increasingly taking to the football pitch in order to boost their image and market appeal as they tap into the huge market created by the world’s most popular game. Samsung is already a huge player in this sponsoring Chelsea Football Club and currently running the alien-inspired Galaxy 11 camapign with stars like Lionel Messi. Microsoft is said to be in talks with one of Europe’s most successful clubs, Real Madrid, with a view of rebranding its historic stadium. Airtel, a telecommunications company has been a partner of Manchester United for a while now. Here at home, Safaricom is huge in sports sponsorships and recently got awarded naming rights of what we used to know as Moi International Sports Centre Kasarani and in addition to the corporate branding will use it to develop and nurture sporting talent in Kenya.
Photos: arsenal.com