Champions League Sponsor Heineken Calls for Free Games on TV
- Dutch brewer renews elite soccer sponsorship through 2021
- Audience in the U.K. has fallen since games moved to pay TV
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Heineken NV has renewed its sponsorship of European soccer’s Champions League through 2021, extending a 20-year association and the company’s biggest sports marketing commitment.
The competition, which resumes later this month, reaches an audience of 1 billion worldwide, said Hans Erik Tuijt, head of global sponsorship at Heineken. Still, he encouraged the Union of European Football Associations to consider returning some games to free TV in its next U.K. media rights deal.