IOC set to sign Toyota as TOP partner – report

Toyota is set to become the first automotive company to sign up as an International Olympic Committee TOP partner, according to Kyodo News.

The Japanese news agency said IOC president Thomas Bach and his Toyota counterpart Akio Toyoda will attend a signing ceremony in Tokyo on March 13.

Tokyo will host the 2020 Olympics and the contract, estimated to be worth in the region of Y100bn (€742m/$844m), is expected to cover that edition of the summer Games.

In August last year, Korean electronics giant Samsung became the last of the IOC’s existing TOP partners to extend its sponsorship through until Tokyo 2020.

Samsung was the 11th company to commit to the TOP Programme through 2020. Japanese tyre company Bridgestone in June became a new addition to the roster, signing a 10-year deal from 2014-15 to 2023-24.

In February 2014, French IT services company Atos renewed its deal through to 2020, while Japanese electronics firm Panasonic became the first TOP partner to extend its partnership through to the 2022-24 period.