Diageo-owned beer brand Guinness has sealed a deal to become the official beer of the Premier League.
The global partnership, announced today (12 June), sees Guinness replace Anheuser-Busch InBev’s Budweiser as the league’s headline beer sponsor. Guinness 0.0%, the brand’s alcohol-free stout, will also become the Premier League’s official non-alcoholic beer.
The tie-up would see Guinness use its “distinctive marketing, creative advertising, and history of activating world-class sports sponsorships” to “inspire new connections between its own consumers and passionate Premier League fans around the world”, Diageo said.
Ahead of the new Premier League season in August, Guinness would launch a new campaign platform to enable fans to “experience Guinness and the Premier League together on match day across pubs and in retail outlets”, it added.
The deal will run for four years from the 2024/25 season. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Partnering with the Premier League would provide “an amazing opportunity to continue the success of the Guinness brand globally and connect with new communities around the football occasion”, according to Diageo’s president for Europe John Kennedy.
“I’m particularly excited for the brand to build on the impressive growth that Guinness 0.0 has seen since its launch, and using our status as the official non-alcoholic beer of the Premier League to lay the foundations for further global rollout around the world,” he added.
Will Brass, the Premier League’s chief commercial officer, said Guinness had “consistently demonstrated world- class creativity, innovation and community storytelling” through its marketing and previous activations in sport.
“We are looking forward to sharing a long-term relationship that will enhance the Premier League football viewing occasion in pubs, bars and homes around the world, and bring to life the magic for which the Premier League is famous,” he added.
News of the partnership comes with Guinness sales having grown 14% globally in the last six months, according to Diageo’s most recent financial results.
In the UK, Guinness is the leading stout brand, with retail sales of £118m [NIQ 52 we 9 September 2023].
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