Pirelli to sponsor Russian football cup; Bridgestone withdraws

ERJ staff report (DS)

Moscow -- The Russian Football Union (RFU) has announced that Pirelli is to be the lead sponsor of the Russian Football Cup.

Bridgestone, which last week said it would be the lead sponsor, has withdrawn from sponsorship. Bridgestone said in a 19 July statement, "Our announcement on July 15, 2011 was based on an agreement in good faith between an agent of the RFU and Bridgestone's advertising agency, and also a July 4, 2011 announcement by the RFU that the official name of the tournament would be "Bridgestone-Cup of Russia on football".

Bridgestone's statement continued, "While Bridgestone is not convinced to the RFU's decision to name another company as title sponsor of the 2011/2012 season Russian Cup, Bridgestone came to a decision that it cannot continue its role as the title sponsor. Bridgestone will, however, continue to explore opportunities in Russia to promote and enhance our brand."

The Russian Football Union said in a 16 July press release in Russian language that the tournament would be named, the "Pirelli-Russian Football Cup." Pirelli confirmed the story with a 16 July press release.

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Press release from Bridgestone

Press release from Pirelli

Press release from Russian Football Union (Russian language)

Above story

auto-translated into English (from Russian)