Berchtesgaden (pps) A successful partnership in winter sports will be extended. The German heating company Viessmann will continue its commitment as main sponsor of the International Luge Federation, FIL, until 2010.

Viessmann, most important FIL sponsoring partner for the past 13 years, will thus remain the main and title sponsor of the World Cup until the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver, Canada. As in the past, the extension of the contract was negotiated by RGS Sportmarketing GmbH in Berchtesgaden.

„Such a long partnership between an international sports federation and a globally operating company is something very special in fast moving times. We are looking forward to the cooperation with our most important sponsor in the next two years”, FIL President Josef Fendt (Berchtesgaden) commented the extension of the contract.

In the past years, TV transmissions of the Viessmann Luge World Cup regularly achieved market shares of more than twenty per-cent.

Already since 1993, Viessmann has been acting as a sponsor in winter sports. Their main goal at that time was to improve the degree of familiarity of the brand Viessmann, to further expand the positive image and to strengthen the identification of the market partners with the company. And it worked out. Within just a short time, the degree of familiarity improved from less than 50 per-cent to more than 80 per-cent. Additionally, the desired image transfer succeeded – especially thanks to the athletes sponsored by Viessmann who were and still are not only likeable but also successful.

According to the analysis of different institutes, Viessmann regularly figured among the top three sponsors in winter sports in the past years. In the sports that are sponsored by Viessmann, they even take top position with regard to the sponsors’ logos shown during TV transmissions.