Nestlé to sponsor Tour de France
The Swiss multinational, Nestlé, has announced it is to sponsor the Tour de France cycle race, despite the recent doping scandals which have tarnished the blue riband event.
Nestlé is hoping to use the 3,462 km race, which runs from July 7-29, to promote its new spring water, Aquarel.
Jeff Caso, Nestlé’s senior marketing vice-president, told swissinfo that he could not reveal the exact cost of the sponsorship deal, citing a confidentiality agreement.
But he conceded the figure was close to the 4 to 4.5 million euros (SFr6.1 million to 7 million), quoted in media reports.
Nestlé’s decision to sponsor the race is said to have been influenced by the recent introduction of measures to combat doping, which were approved by the International Cyclists Union and the French Cycling Federation.
swissinfo
In compliance with the JTI standards
More: SWI swissinfo.ch certified by the Journalism Trust Initiative
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here. Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.