Infront, responsible for global TV rights sales and production for the soccer World Cup, has acquired a 100 per cent shareholding in Swedevent.
It plans to restructure, grow and expand the business over the next three-to-four years. Anders Lilius has been appointed as the new managing director of Infront Sweden, and will work closely with the company’s founder, Arne Norberg.
Infront already has long-term international marketing partnerships with the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) and the European Handball Federation – both important properties in the Swedish market.
As well as affiliations in football which will be joined by the addition of Swedevent’s portfolio, including the Swedish Ice Hockey and Swedish Football Associations, Infront claims the new company will complement it by adding expertise in sports hospitality, event management, merchandising and event travel sectors.
Infront believes that Nordic expansion is important to position it as a leading player in the heart of the winter sports market - the Nordic region is said to represents 23 per cent of the world market share.
Together, Sweden (39 per cent) and Finland (14 per cent) make up more than 50 per cent of the Nordic sports sponsorship market.
