Lexus has replaced Lincoln as the sponsor of the U.S. Tennis Association's (USTA) biggest event, the U.S. Open. The new deal puts Lexus in a three-year worldwide marketing partnering deal with options for renewal.

Toyota's luxury brand has been designated the "Presenting Sponsor of the U.S. Open Men's Singles Championship" and the "Official Vehicle" of the U.S. Open, the highest attended annual sporting event in the world - over 630,000 last year during the 14-day tournament.

The television audience for the Open is very big. Last year CBS Sports and USA Network's broadcasts of the Open were seen by more than 86 million viewers in the U.S. and the event was also broadcast to 199 countries.

The men's singles champion at the U.S. Open this year, in addition to a first-place prize of about $1 million, will be presented with a new 2006 Lexus GS430 sedan. Both are usually presented by the presenting sponsor's top exec after the conclusion of the match. Last year Roger Federer of Switzerland was the men's singles champion.

The Lexus logo will appear on the net posts of all men's singles events matches from the early rounds to the championship game. Various Lexus vehicles, including the new GS430 will be displayed on the grounds of the USTA National Tennis Center in New York. Additionally Lexus is providing over 100 vehicles for use by players, coaches, and officials.

This is Lexus' first venture in tennis. It is interesting to note, however, that Debbie Wahl-Meyer, the brand's recently promoted vice president of marketing, who was involved with the deal making, was with Lincoln a few years ago, when that brand became a U.S. Open sponsor. -Marty Bernstein


http://www.thecarconnection.com/Indu...173.A8770.html

 

More press is never a bad thing...

 

Lexus and Toyota Motor Corp have made big strides regarding recognition as of late. When I boarded the plane at the Nagoya airport for the flight home, "Lexus" was imprinted on each of the exterior boarding ramps . Look at the printed ads in the magazines, many of the prominent spots are now held by Toyota Motor Corp.

I'm happy Toyota is a prosperous company yet at the same time, this domination may build anti-sentiment as we've been reading elsewhere.

 

that's very nice, it's time for lexus to get as many exposure as possible. really looking forward to see what lexus would be like in 2 yrs

 

Can't wait to see the Circle-L logo on the nets at Arthur Ash stadium soon!

 

Glad that they recognize that there is still room for improvement and creating more brand awareness.
With Lexus introducing hybrids and AWD etc etc, there are new customers for them

 

IT'll be great to see the familiar L logo while watching one of the many enjoyable sports events on TV. for Lexus' involvement.

-Anthony

 

Woo hoo! Now I need to buy some Lexus bags for my racquets. That's defintely a great marketing move on Lexus. More exposure more recognition. One of my "to do's" on my list of vacation spots is to visit NYC and watch the US Open live.

 

I remember seeing the Lincoln logo on both sides of the net on TV during the matches, and also the Mercedes-Benz logo during some other tournament.