McDonald’s Readies for Its Next Olympic Close-up

Highlighting its eighth consecutive outing as the official restaurant of the Olympics, quick-serve giant McDonald’s outlines sponsorship plans for the 2010 Winter Olympics to be held in Vancouver Canada this coming February.

Speaking at a press conference yesterday, global chief marketing officer Mary Dillon said the company would highlight American competitors on special packaging in its 15,000 U.S. restaurants during the games, featuring the likes of snowboarder Graham Watanabe and speed skater J.R. Celski. Paralympics skier Sean Halsted will appear in U.S. TV spots timed to the competition.

McDonald’s USA will also highlight its Chicken McNuggets menu item and a new limited-time special sauce during the games.

Other regions in the global company will also get special packaging and broadcast spots featuring local Olympic contenders. In Canada, McDonald’s will roll out six new TV spots and locally specific packaging in its 1,400 restaurants, and will also feature the Olympic mascots in the Happy Meals sold during the Olympics.

And as it did during the Beijing Summer Olympics of 2008, McDonald’s will bring a number of children from around the world to the Vancouver Games to attend the events, meet the athletes, visit the Olympic Village, tour the local sites and receive their own gold medals from the hands of former Olympians.

The 10 young people traveling from the U.S. were selected via an essay contest about the Olympic values of excellence, friendship and respect that was judged in part by the same Olympians McDonald’s is featuring in its promotion. Their names were revealed during yesterday’s contest. Other McDonald’s regional divisions will bring Champion Kids to the Winter Olympic Games from Germany, Great Britain and the Ukraine.

Besides watching the games and taking in the local sights, the McDonald’s Champion Kids will also share their experiences with their hometown news outlets.
And also as in Beijing, the three McDonald’s restaurants in the Vancouver Olympic Village will be staffed by a McDonald’s Olympic Champion Crew, 300 top-performing associates chosen from across Canada.