From From Al Jazeera English:
It’s a sunny Friday afternoon and a football match is under way between two Beijing school teams. The game is fast-paced and competitive and the boys show off solid skills. Their training from experienced coaches is showing signs of paying off – with the help of Adidas .
Companies such as Adidas have seen consumer profit potential in China for years. Now, the Beijing Olympics has bumped the competition up several notches. Adidas has signed up as a partner to the 2008 games along with 54 other sponsors – the largest number of companies ever involved in a single Olympics.
Those uncomfortable with the level of commercialism tied to the planet’s biggest sporting event can only brace themselves – in the last year before the games finally begin even more companies will jump on the Olympic bandwagon.[Full Text]
