The Australian Open grand slam tennis tournament and alcohol company Luzhou Laojiao have announced a multi-year renewal of their partnership.
Luzhou Laojiao is set to continue as the official baijiu partner of the Melbourne-based Australian Open for the next five years. Baijiu is a Chinese colorless liquor typically between 355 and 60% in alcohol volume.
The first deal between the two parties came into effect for the 2019 Australian Open.
As part of the deal, Luzhou Laojiao will continue to receive global exposure and brand engagement, including title sponsorship of the Winning Moments series, and the 1573 Arena, named after the Guojiao 1573 drink.
Luzhou Laojiao is also an official partner of the Australian Open Asia Pacific Wildcard Play-off, which will return to China in 2024, taking place in Chengdu for the first time.
The company has also been the title sponsor of the Luzhou Laojiao Guaojiao 1573 AO China Challenge for the past five years, with the winners having the opportunity to compete at the 1573 Arena at Melbourne Park.
Tennis Australia chief commercial officer Cedric Cornelis said: “We are delighted to extend our partnership with Luzhou Laojiao, which has been an associate-level partner of the Australian Open since 2019.
“Our shared values of history, heritage, culture, and innovation have been celebrated between the Australian Open and Luzhou Laojiao in the past five years of partnership and will continue to be the core of our partnership going forward.
“As the Grand Slam of Asia Pacific, we are incredibly excited by the return of the Asia Pacific Wildcard Play-off that will be hosted in Chengdu next year. The Asia Pacific Wildcard Play-off tournament will be an important platform to showcase the strong pipeline of talents in the region as tennis constantly grows in popularity.”
Wang Hongbo, vice general manager of Luzhou Laojiao, added: “We look forward to the new phase of the partnership with the Australian Open for the next five years. The collaboration between Luzhou Laojiao and the Australian Open will once again enhance the international influence of both parties.”
The last Australian Open broke Grand Slam attendance records after attracting more than 900,000 visitors to Melbourne Park over three weeks despite a shortage of high-profile players and rain delays.
The 2024 edition of the tournament will take place between January 14 and 28.
