Itaú, a privately owned bank based in Brazil, is the new lead sponsor of the tennis tournament formerly known as the Sony Open. Sony served its last year as sponsor this year. The tournament will now be known as the Miami Open presented by Itaú.
“We decided to change the name in order to leverage the history of the tournament, the partnership with the bank and our place in one of the greatest cities of the world,” said Adam Barrett, the Miami Open’s executive vice president and tournament director.
Itaú will present the tournament for the next five years at the Crandon Park Tennis Center on Key Biscayne. But representatives from Itaú say they hope the partnership will extend beyond 2019.
“Being a presenting sponsor for the Open will strengthen our brand and we’re looking for a continuing relationship,” said Andréa Matteucci Pinotti Cordeiro, managing director at Itaú Unibanco. The economic impact of the tournament is estimated at $386 million for Miami-Dade County because more than 300,000 visitors are expected to attend.
The bank, which has been sponsoring sports events since the 70s, was the official bank of the 2014 FIFA World Cup and is the sponsor of the Brazilian National Football Team.
Other major sponsors of the Miami Open include Fed Ex, Bacardi and MasterCard.
The tournament will be March 23-April 5, 2015 and tickets go on sale Aug. 25 at MiamiOpen.com. The event will be broadcast in 193 countries and will feature top-ranked professionals: 96 men and 96 women in singles competition and 32 men’s teams and 32 women’s teams in doubles games.