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OAK BROOK, IL — After a partnership that began more than four
decades ago, McDonald's has ended its famous sponsorship of the
Olympics. McDonald's was scheduled to remain an Olympics sponsor
through 2020, but has ended its TOP (The Olympic Partner
Programme) partnership and will only provide limited sponsorship
for the PyeongChang, South Korea, 2018 Winter Games.

It's been a year of unexpected changes for McDonald's, which
rolled out futuristic uniforms, McDelivery and a fork made out
of french fries, but this move is the most attention-grabbing to
date. In a statement, McDonald's Corp. Global Chief Marketing
Officer Silvia Lagnado said the mutual decision is part of the
company's worldwide growth plan. Lagnado added, "We are
reconsidering all aspects of our business and have made this
decision in cooperation with the IOC to focus on different
priorities."

Of the decades-long partnership, which began in 1976, Lagnado
said, "We have been proud to support the Olympic Movement, and
we thank our customers and staff, the spectators, athletes and
officials, as well as the IOC and local Olympics Games
organizing committees, for all of their support over the years."

In a statement on behalf of the International Olympic Committee,
Timo Lumme, managing director of IOC television and marketing
services, said, "In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape,
we understand that McDonald’s is looking to focus on different
business priorities. For these reasons, we have mutually agreed
with McDonald’s to part ways. I would like to thank our friends
at McDonald’s on behalf of the IOC for the commitment the
company has shown to the Olympic Movement over many decades.”

The IOC reportedly has no immediate plans to find a replacement
sponsor.

https://patch.com/california/sanjuancapistrano/s/g5l57/mcdonalds- just-ended-its-olympics-sponsorship

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