14th Dec 2005 09:31
Vodafone Group Plc14 December 2005 14th December 2005 VODAFONE WILL BE McLAREN MERCEDES TITLE SPONSOR Vodafone and the McLaren Mercedes Formula One team today announce a long-termsponsorship agreement, commencing January 2007 which will last into the nextdecade. Vodafone will become Title Sponsor of the Team - 'Vodafone McLarenMercedes' and the 'Official Mobile Partner'. The sponsorship demonstrates Vodafone's ongoing commitment to the Formula OneWorld Championship, a sport which continues to deliver massive global televisioncoverage and which has significant appeal for Vodafone's consumer and businesscustomers around the world. The title sponsorship includes a number of benefits: - The team name will be 'Vodafone McLaren Mercedes'. - Vodafone will be the 'Official Mobile Partner' of the team. - Dominant Title Sponsorship branding on the new 2007 cars, drivers' and pit crews' overalls and helmets and other ancillary elements. - Significant marketing activation opportunities including hospitality, merchandising, and promotional rights including access to drivers and track days. - Behind the scenes access to the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes racing team, enabling Vodafone to bring exclusive content to Vodafone live! with 3G customers, allowing them to 'live the motor racing experience' and feel part of the racing team. - Additional content will include Vodafone McLaren Mercedes racing news updates, test results and full team biographies, the McLaren story, exclusive Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team games, videos, ringtones, wallpapers and screensavers. Commenting on the agreement Peter Bamford, Vodafone's Chief Marketing Officersaid, "We are excited about this new phase of involvement in motor racing. AsTitle Sponsor of the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team it raises our associationwith Formula One to the ultimate level. The new agreement delivers a fantasticmarketing platform; the associative rights we acquire as a result of this newsponsorship provide us with additional opportunities to continue to raise brandawareness, build brand preference and drive revenue. It will also provide ourcustomers with unique and exciting content through Vodafone live! with 3G." "This is only the third time for more than 30 years that the opportunity tobecome the team's Title Sponsor has existed," said Ron Dennis, Chairman and CEOof the McLaren Group and McLaren Mercedes Team Principal. "The status of thebrand and the level of activation in support of the sponsorship were keycriteria for our choice of Title Sponsor and Vodafone over-delivers in allrespects. In addition, as our agreement is long-term, this provides importantstability within the Team, allowing us to focus fully on our objective ofwinning races and Championships together. We are delighted to welcome Vodafoneto the team and look forward to many future successes." "We welcome Vodafone as the new title sponsor to the team," said Norbert Haug,Vice-President, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport. "The fact that a world-renowned brandlike Vodafone with such an impressive market performance has joined us is ofsignificant importance not only for the team but also for all our world classsponsor partners. I am sure that each one will benefit from the respectiveactivities of the other, which is a first class prospect for everybodyinvolved." - ENDS - For further information: Vodafone Group McLaren GroupMedia Relations Media CommunicationsTel: +44 (0) 1635 664444 Tel: +44 (0) 1483 261900 Sports Sponsorship PR Mercedes-BenzTel: +44 (0) 1635 672247 Motorsport Communications Tel: +49 (0) 711 17 48008 About Vodafone Vodafone provides a full range of mobile telecommunications services, includingvoice and data communications. Vodafone has equity interests in 27 countries andPartner Networks in a further 27 countries, with a proportionate customer baseof over 171 million. Vodafone live! with 3G is available in 18 countriesworldwide. For more information, please visit www.vodafone.com (c) Vodafone Group 2005. VODAFONE, the Vodafone logos and Vodafone live! aretrade marks of the Vodafone Group. Other product and company names mentionedherein may be the trade marks of their respective owners. About McLaren McLaren Racing, the company behind the McLaren Mercedes team, was formed inSeptember 1980 as a result of a merger between Team McLaren and Project Four, aBritish company owned by Ron Dennis, now Chairman and CEO of the McLaren Group.McLaren has competed in Formula One since 1966 and since then is the mostsuccessful Formula One team with 148 Grands Prix wins. The team has also claimedeleven Formula One Drivers' World Championships and eight Formula One WorldConstructors' Championship and to date, McLaren has raced in 596 Grands Prix.The McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, England, the McLaren Group'sheadquarters has been developed on a 50 hectare site. The facility includesdesign studios, laboratories, research and testing facilities, electronicsdevelopment, machine shops and production facilities for the McLaren MercedesFormula One cars and the Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren. For more information aboutMcLaren please visit www.mclaren.com. 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