How Brands Will Help the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games Go for Gold

The Paris 2024 Paralympic Games are set to be the most watched in its history, with a record 160 broadcasters signing up to cover the event. That will be welcome news for sponsors, but for organizers it marks a whole new step forward for the para movement.

The previous Paralympic Summer games, held in Tokyo four years ago, were sold to 154 countries and territories, when 19 sports were included. They reached around 4.1 billion people, according to the Paris 2024 organizing committee. This year, the games will feature 22 sports and 4,400 Paralympic athletes.

Despite that, it’s expected that most of the attention and brand activation will still focus on the Olympics held just a few weeks in advance.

Charged with the development of the Paralympic movement is a nonprofit organization and global governing body, the International Paralympic Committee (IPC). Headquartered in Bonn, Germany, the IPC oversees the successful delivery of the Games while supporting over 200 members to develop para sport and advocate for social inclusion.

Following a 2018 ruling, all Olympic sponsors must now support both games. This decision will bring stability to the Paralympics with both events taking place in the same city, explained Craig Spence, the IPC’s chief brand and communications officer. This mandate will carry on past California 2028 until at least 2032, when the Games will be held in Brisbane, Australia.

“Knowing that we’ve got the support of all the top partners in terms of activating their rights around the Paralympics also helps amplify the coverage of the Games and the Paralympics to whole new audiences around the world,” he added.

Brands that fail to use their Paralympic sponsorship rights to the full are missing a massive trick.

Louise Johnson, CEO, Fuse

Compared to the International Olympic Committee’s workforce of thousands, Spence noted that the IPC employs just 140 people with an average annual turnover of $22 million (20 million Euros.) The communications and brands team is 25 people strong, made up of various nationalities and working alongside internal broadcast and partnership teams, which all combine to maximize coverage of the Games and the work of their partners around the world.

Partnership commitments

This year, brand partners are divided into four categories: Worldwide, Premium, Official Partners and Official Supporters. Across those are some of the most recognizable companies in the world including P&G, Airbnb, LVMH, Alibaba, Bridgestone, Visa, Panasonic and Toyota.

When the IOC signs up a new partner, they automatically become a partner of the Paralympic Games and have the right to activate it; however, they are not afforded National Paralympic Committee rights, except Toyota which was the first to secure all rights. Unusually, Allianz began its relationship with the Games as a Paralympic partner in 2006 before growing its affinity to include the Olympics.

The value of sponsorship agreements is kept private due to commercial sensitivities of the brands involved, and there is an agreement in place between the IPC and the IOC around how the revenue is split, but Spence admits it is not an equal share.

“Because the IOC manages the program, they provide the revenue stream to the IPC that ensures our security and ensures our long-term plan,” he explained.

Partners then offer their services, with Bridgestone developing gloves with special grips for athletes using wheelchairs to compete, while Allianz will release a 10-part online series to explain different parts of the Games, including the difference between the Olympics and Paralympics. It also sponsored a one-day event in Paris last year featuring disabled athletes and released a sponsorship ad campaign to raise awareness of the upcoming event.

Meanwhile, luxury brand owner LVMH’s jeweler Chaumet has designed the medals for both the Olympics and Paralympics. Other members of its stable will also support the Games, with beauty retailer Sephora helping to facilitate the Olympic torch relay, while Champagne label Moët Hennessy suppling hospitality venues. Another of its brands, Berluti, will dress the French athletes.

Airbnb has also partnered with Para athletes Sofyane Mehiaoui and Axel Alletru to help them host their homes with accessibility features during the Games. This initiative will also promote the company’s commitment to inclusive travel, with the athletes’ homes featured in its Adapted Category, which includes more than 1,100 listings worldwide. 

Spence explains that brands now see their support for the Paralympics as an opportunity to bolster their CSR strategies, while underlining their sustainability credentials in the process.

Toyota, through its eight years of supporting the Paralympics, has refocused to become a “mobility company” and will supply a passenger fleet of more than 2,650 electrified vehicles and 700 “last-mile solutions” during both Games.

“The Paralympic Games offers brands a huge opportunity to feature this group in ads and activations which are inspiring, empowering and tell great stories which appeal to every audience,” explained Louise Johnson, CEO of sport and entertainment marketing agency Fuse.

“Taking that opportunity should be a no-brainer. Brands that fail to use their Paralympic sponsorship rights to the full are missing a massive trick,” she continued.

Building an American audience

One major element of the forthcoming Paralympics will be looking ahead to the California Games in 2028, where the organization hopes to grow awareness of the event among Americans while changing perceptions and fostering a greater understanding that this is not the Special Olympics.

“There’s some brand confusion there,” Spence admitted. “It sometimes takes the Games to happen to change a country. It throws open the challenge of how we ensure amplification in every single market around the world, not just those countries that are Paralympic-friendly.”

To do this, the Games are also in the process of developing their first Paralympic Games advertising campaign, having commissioned Adam&EveDDB. This will be given to rights holders to help them promote their coverage and is expected to be released around the 50 days to go mark. It will also feature a world-famous music artist, but Spence would not reveal any further details.

The U.S. audience will be served by broadcast rights holders such as NBC Universal, which will air 1,500 hours of TV and streaming programming of the Paralympics, with live coverage also set to be hosted across USA Network and CNBC, plus streaming on Peacock.

“There’s a huge shift away from traditional linear TV and therefore we’re working with our rights holder to say ‘What are you doing to maximize these Games digitally across your channels?’ So if you’ve secured exclusive rights, we expect you to use the content. Don’t just hoard it so that other people can’t see it,” Spence said.

Short-form content will also be released, recognizing the trend that audiences no longer sit for long periods to watch live sports. Social media platforms such as TikTok and YouTube are also being engaged by the IPC to maximize coverage.