The Olympics have always had mascots, but let’s just say if you ask any ordinary joe on the street to name any of them, they’d be at a loss of words. So in a move that I would consider smart, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has teamed up with an iconic brand to help raise the Olympic Games profile.
SEGA and Sonic the Hedgehog brand are now in a multi-year agreement with the IOC and the pairing’s first collaboration will be known as “Five Rings” (Get it cause Sonic games involves collecting rings and the logo of the Olympic games container…well five rings). It makes sense that the IOC would reach out to SEGA and the Sonic brand given the latter has collaborated in a series of Olympic video games. The duo have released some art denoting the start of this partnership and are seeking out partners as they ramp up for the next Olympics Games being held in Milano and Cortina.
While it’s great to see Sonic and friends promoting the Olympics, it’s a shame it isn’t inclusive of the publisher’s other brands. Come on, who doesn’t want to see key-art of AiAi running 100m or Mitsuru Kirijo fencing on the world stage?