Pernod Ricard abandons partnership with PSG and loses significant international exposure

The rivalry between the Marseillais and the Parisians got the better of this commercial agreement which was supposed to last four years, and which was supposed to allow Pernod-Ricard to promote some of its 240 brands abroad.

The pressure from OM supporters has won out. It is impossible to imagine a historic group founded in 1932 by Paul Ricard, a Marseille icon, supporting the great rivals of Paris Saint-Germain. “Ineptitude”, “blasphemy”… Even the mayor of Marseille, Benoît Payan, spoke out on Wednesday, September 4. That was enough, in the eyes of the CEO of the Pernod-Ricard group, Alexandre Ricard, to give up on the matter.“It is a decision that comes from the heart that I am making today.”said the founder’s grandson, acknowledging a ““too much ambiguity”.

It took just four days for the deal to fall apart. The commercial partnership made the Pernod Ricard brand the sole supplier of PSG, not of pastis, but of champagne and spirits. The French company is now the world’s number two in spirits with a turnover of 12 billion euros. The agreement, the financial amount of which remains secret, would have allowed Pernod Ricard to promote some of its 240 brands abroad: Chivas whisky, Malibu and Mumm champagne, among others. The Parisian club being in the world’s top five in terms of football franchises, it offered superb visibility.

Less communication and advertising internationally, therefore, and a negative impact also in France, which remains the group’s home port. Since Monday, September 2, the day the agreement with the Parisian club was signed, the controversy has continued to swell and many Marseille supporters have called on social networks to boycott Pernod Ricard. Some bar managers on the Canebière have gone so far as to hide the name Ricard on the famous yellow carafes with black adhesive tape, others have promised to sell off their stocks of bottles and stop selling the drink as of next week. The termination of the agreement between Pernod Ricard and PSG is far from being a storm in a glass of aniseed water because the financial and communication stakes were significant. But sometimes, as they say, you have to know how to make the best of a bad situation.