Amidst a number of long-standing, damning reports surrounding both the bidding process and preparations surrounding the 2018 Qatar and 2022 Russia FIFA World Cups, Sony announced it would be withdrawing its sponsorship deal with international soccer's governing body Tuesday afternoon.
As one of FIFA's six "official partners," Sony was committing up to $280 million dollars a year in sponsorship money in the current arrangement. The deal runs until December 31, 2014, at which point Sony will decline to renew it.
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This blow from Sony comes right on the heels of two other partners making their displeasure with FIFA publicly known.
Earlier in November Emirates Airlines announced that they would similarly decline to renew their partnership, while representatives from Coca-Cola issued a demand “for transparency amid the deepening crisis over the organization’s attempts to whitewash a report on corruption in the bidding for the 2018 and 2022 World Cups."
In addition to the purportedly shady dealings in the 2018 and 2022 host bid process, FIFA has also drawn heavy criticism for the working conditions of migrant workers in Qatar building for the World Cup. Conditions have been described as dismal, even slave-like, with workers reportedly going over a year without pay.
According to The Guardian, FIFA's official partnerships accounts for nearly a billion in a half in revenue for the organization each World Cup cycle. Adidas has already renewed its sponsorship through 2030, while Coca-Cola, Hyundai/Kia, and Visa have yet to announce their decisions. The Guardian also stated that Samsung and Qatar Air are the two leading contenders to replace the now-departing Sony and Emirates.
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