McDonald's, IOC End Olympic Partnership Early
June 16 2017 - 9:11AM
Dow Jones News
By Imani Moise
The International Olympic Committee said it and fast-food giant
McDonald's Corp. have agreed to end their long-running partnership
before their latest deal was set to expire.
The chain, which began working with the IOC in 1968, said it was
shifting its focus as part of its global growth plan.
"We understand that McDonald's is looking to focus on different
business priorities," the IOC said in a statement. "For these
reasons, we have mutually agreed with McDonald's to part ways."
McDonald's will still provide advertisements and restaurants in
Pyeongchang, South Korea, for the 2018 Olympic Games, but the
partnership will otherwise end effective immediately. The current
deal was supposed to last through 2020, and the IOC said it has no
current plans to name a direct replacement.
The agreement ends a nearly half-century relationship between
the two organizations. The fast-food chain says it got involved by
airlifting burgers to France to U.S. athletes who were homesick for
American food. McDonald's became an official sponsor eight years
later in 1976.
The IOC said the financial terms of cutting the partnership
short are confidential.
Write to Imani Moise at imani.moise@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 16, 2017 08:56 ET (12:56 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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