Sonic Goes for Gold with New Multi-Year Marketing Alliance with the Olympic Games

We tend to always associate SEGA with the Olympic Games, perhaps because of its various licensed tie-ins over the years – and, of course, the Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games series.

But at Paris in 2024, the publisher stepped away from the event, leaving something of a hole.

Now, the Japanese publisher has announced a new multi-year partnership with the International Olympic Committee (or IOC), which will see Sonic and friends incorporated into the branding of the event.

It’s important to note that this deal, for now, purely encompasses artwork and merchandise. There’s no mention of a new video game in the press release right now.

The first artwork (above) is fantastic, though, showing various Sonic characters depicted in the main colours of the Olympic rings. The slogans ‘Going for Gold’ and ‘Olympic Dream’ are also used.

On the partnership, SEGA boss Shuji Utsumi said:

“We’re committed to fostering respectful and inclusive communities across the globe at SEGA. Partnering with the International Olympic Committee allows us to bring those values to the forefront, especially with the Five Rings program, and celebrate the innovative and diverse spirit both of these brands promote.”

The next Olympic Games event is the 2026 Winter Games set to take place in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo in February, so it’ll be interesting to see how Sonic is leveraged for that.

It should give us a better idea of what to expect from the 2028 Olympic Games, which is set to take place in LA.