• The New York Times, Wednesday, March 31, 2010 11:02 PM

Advertisers are already gearing up for June 11-July 11 and the World Cup. New ads for Powerade, sold by the Coca-Cola Company, will play up its status as the official sports drink of the 2010 World Cup. Hyundai is the exclusive automotive sponsor of the ABC and ESPN coverage of the World Cup. The event has attracted a lengthy list of blue-chip sponsors seeking to capitalize on the global passion for soccer.Among those marketers are Adidas, Anheuser-Busch InBev, Coca-Cola, McDonald's, Nike and Visa.

The ardor for the World Cup is another example of how advertisers are stepping up support for marquee televised events, known as big event TV. "Major sporting events, big-event television, are a wonderful platform," said Mark Greatrex, senior vice president for global still beverages at Coca-Cola in Atlanta. They also can help "drive global scale for our big brands."

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