ORLANDO, Fla. – January 11, 2016 – The Coca-Cola Company today was named the official carbonated beverage and bottled water partner of Orlando City SC. In addition, ZICO was named the official coconut water of Orlando City.
Coca-Cola, a league-wide partner, will have exclusive pouring rights in the new downtown soccer stadium—the future home for Orlando City’s Major League Soccer (MLS) and Orlando Pride’s National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) teams.
“This is an exciting time for our city as the sport is on the rise in the U.S. and Orlando like never before,” said Orlando City Founder and President Phil Rawlins. “Our partnership with Coca-Cola, a company that has demonstrated its passion and commitment for soccer at a domestic and global level, speaks volumes to the world-wide attention our fans have helped us capture from reputable global brands.”
As part of the agreement, Coca-Cola will execute activations in the stadium’s Fan Zone Mane Street, which has an estimated average pass-through attendance of 60 percent of fans on match day. It will also continue its collaboration across the Club’s youth development and community relations efforts.
“We are thrilled to be the official carbonated beverage and bottled water partner for the Orlando City SC,” said Marie Perry, North Florida Market Unit General Manager for Coca-Cola Refreshments. “Coca-Cola has been a major sponsor of the game of soccer around the world through partnerships with FIFA World Cup, Major League Soccer and the U.S. Soccer Federation.” MLS and U.S. Soccer Federation announced a multi-year partnership with the Coca-Cola Company in April 2015, making Coca-Cola the official beverage partner in the carbonated beverage and bottled water categories for MLS, and across all non-alcoholic beverage categories for U.S. Soccer.
Coca-Cola has also been a global partner of the FIFA World Cup since 1974. During the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Coca-Cola activated its largest-ever global soccer campaign, “The World’s Cup,” which brought The FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour presented by Coca-Cola to 89 countries across the globe in 2014, including four stops in the United States.
Coca-Cola works at the grassroots level through various annual soccer programs including the international Copa Coca-Cola soccer tournament.
