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Riot Games has announced Heineken as the latest sponsor of the Brazilian League of Legends Championship (CBLOL). The International beer brand will be an official sponsor of the CBLOL for the next two years with the possibility of renewal.
According to Riot Games, Heineken’s brand message of being ‘for players who appreciate quality beer but do not want to give up on high competitive performance’ fits with its choice of the Heineken 0.0 being the flagship brand for the tournament.
Head of Esports at Riot Games Brazil, Carlos Antunes commented that the partnership proves the enormous reach of Esports in Brazil as a market. He also stated that the esports events give brands the opportunity to “connect with new audiences in a more authentic way.”
“By partnering with one of the most iconic brands in the beer universe and with a great tradition of supporting sports, we can show even more the enormous reach of Esports in Brazil as a market and also highlight its potential for brands to connect with new audiences in a more authentic way. Just as we managed to bring the quality and excellence of CBLOL to more than 12 million fans in 2021, we are confident that we will offer experiences for the gaming community and Esports fans that only Heineken® 0.0 and CBLOL can offer and, together, reap the fruits of a long-lasting relationship.”
The partnership will see Heineken promote its non-alcoholic beer brand – Heineken 0.0 in CBLOL broadcasts for the duration of the partnership. The decision to promote its Heineken 0.0 product fits right into CBLOL’s target audience.
As part of the partnership agreement, the beer brand will acquire the naming rights of the championship trophy assigned to the people’s choice of the best player in the tournament. A ceremony will be held for the Craque da Galera (best player award in Portuguese) at the end of the year.
The Director of Heineken Business Unit Brazil, Eduardo Picarelli spoke about partnership. He stated the partnership affords the brand the opportunity to “create new brand experiences relevant to consumers and competitors” as well as amplify the Heineken 0.0 brand message to a new audience.
“Heineken 0.0 arrived in Brazil inheriting communication platforms from the parent brand and now follows a pioneer in leading the first Heineken game platform in the world. Being inserted in the world of games allows us to create new brand experiences relevant to consumers and competitors, as well as amplifying our messages to a new audience that is attentive and engaged in high performance.”
The second split of the 2022 CBLOL commenced on June 11 and will run till August 7. It featured the beer brand on its broadcast and live event. The live event holds at the Riot Games’ CBLOL Arena, São Paulo.
Due to the esports industry being populated by a younger audience, the idea of a beer brand sponsoring an esports event was outright shunned at. But recent occurrences suggest that stance has seemingly changed as beer brand sponsorship continues to get more traction in the industry.
While this is the first activation done by Heineken in the esports title – League of Legends. This is also the first beer brand sponsorship secured by Riot Games for its Brazilian tournaments.
Riot Games had secured a deal with Bud Light for the League of Legends Championship in 2020 for the North American scene. In the Latin American scene, a deal was put in place with the World’s largest brewer Ab InBev for the Liga Latino America (LLB).
Prior to the partnership with Heineken, Riot Games had earlier secured another major sponsor for the Brazilian League of Legends tournament. The organizer had announced a five-year partnership deal with one of the top banks in the region, Santander. The bank’s partnership will span across CBLOL and its Academy Division.
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