Huawei inks sponsor deal with AC Milan

MILAN, Italy - China's biggest information and communication technology (ICT) firm Huawei and AC Milan on Wednesday signed a sponsorship agreement that named Huawei Premium Sponsor and Mobile Partner of AC Milan.

Chinese telicomes giant Huawei inked a deal with the storied Italian football team AC Milan to become its premium sponsor. [Photo/CFP]

Huawei and AC Milan representatives said at a press conference held inside the football club headquarters in Milan that with the signing of the agreement, Huawei became the official Mobile Partner of the AC Milan team and, in recognition of the technological excellence of its products, supplier of communications solutions for the football club.

The sponsorship was aimed at creating synergy between the two brands and included the use of AC Milan's logo and player images for Huawei's communication and promotion activities, they said.

"It is a great honor for AC Milan to be chosen by a global giant like Huawei to implement its development and market strategies," Adriano Galliani, Deputy Chairman and Managing Director of AC Milan, highlighted.

"We have signed a three-year agreement that will allow us to jointly plan and develop a number of business and consumer activities," he said adding that the agreement with Huawei will offer "great business opportunities in the Chinese market."

George Zhao, CEO of Huawei Italy, said that after the great success of 2011 Super Cup sponsorship in Beijing, Huawei was " excited to continue the partnership with AC Milan, a recognized football leader that perfectly matches the goal of building Huawei 's leadership within the consumer market."

"AC Milan's popularity in China opens up great opportunities for collaboration in the near future," he added.

After starting as telecommunication technologies and equipment supplier, Huawei has gradually moved into the consumer world with a wide range of mobile devices and connectivity products.

"This sponsorship is a great opportunity to bring our brand and our products to a wider consumer audience, not only in the Italian and European markets but also on a global level," Daniele De Grandis, Executive Director of Huawei Device Italy, noted.

"We are proud to link our brand to AC Milan, a team with an outstanding performance record that represents our high-tech and high-performance products, such as our latest smartphone the HUAWEI Ascend P6," he also added.

Franco Baresi and Daniele Massaro, former players and official ambassadors of AC Milan, also attended the signing. "It is in the East that the greatest part of our supporters are, and we hope that AC Milan will have the opportunity to play more and more matches in China," Massaro told reporters.