The deal was secured by the USOC and the national body’s Olympic broadcast partner, NBC, and the agreement includes advertising buys on the network’s coverage of next year’s Olympics. Financial details have not been disclosed.
Citigroup received about $45 billion in US government bailout money to help it survive during the global financial downturn. The company has repaid the money since then and has reported profits in the last four sets of quarterly financial results.
In an interview with The Associated Press, Citigroup CEO Vikram Pandit said the sponsorship is “about just saying thanks to the American people who have supported us through everything that has happened the last few years”.
“We have turned the corner, no question about it,” Pandit said. “Having an opportunity to sponsor a key event that's important to the US, we think it's an important part of what we need to be doing, what we should be doing and it's what we are doing.”
The sponsorship marks the second such deal agreed by the USOC-NBC collaboration, with online broker TD Ameritrade having penned a two-year deal last month.
