Jul 19, 2021 - Sports

First look: New Olympics ad thanks sponsors

A new Olympics ad features athletes shouting out corporate sponsors and thanking them for the big money that allows them to compete.

The big picture: The ad is funded by the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee. It starts airing Tuesday, ahead of Friday's opening ceremony.

The backdrop: There's less upside to companies stepping up to sponsor the Olympics than in years past.

The Games are no longer the predictable investment that they were pre-pandemic — and companies have to contend with being tied closely to the public perception that they may be a super-spreader event, Axios' Hope King reports.