ŠKoda Refused to Sponsor the 2021 World Ice Hockey Championship if It Is Held in Belarus
9- 16.01.2021, 14:54
- 22,154
Yesterday another sponsor of the championship, the NIVEA brand, announced its refusal.
The car manufacturer Škoda has refused to sponsor the Ice Hockey World Championship if it is held in Belarus. Note that this is the official main sponsor of the World Championships.
"We are proud to have been a partner of the IIHF World Championships for 28 years. But we also respect and promote human rights. Therefore, Škoda will refuse to sponsor the 2021 Ice Hockey World Championship if it is confirmed that Belarus will host this competition," is said in the official statement.
We've been a proud partner to the @IIHFHockey World Championship for 28 years. But we also respect & promote all human rights. Therefore, #SKODA will withdraw from sponsoring the 2021 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship if #Belarus is confirmed to be co-hosting the event. pic.twitter.com/fC3ZMbY2cG
— ŠKODA AUTO NEWS (@skodaautonews) January 16, 2021
As a reminder, yesterday, another sponsor of the championship, the NIVEA MEN brand, announced its refusal to participate:
"NIVEA stands for respect, unity, and resists all forms of discrimination and violence. Seeing the current situation, we decided that the NIVEA MEN brand will not sponsor the 2021 World Cup if it is held in Belarus. We have already informed the IIHF of this and will closely follow the ongoing discussions [on this issue]."
Recall that the 2021 World Cup is to be held in Minsk and Riga from May 21 to June 6, 2021. However, due to the country's political situation and suspicion of the provision of inaccurate statistics on COVID-19 by the Ministry of Health, several European countries spoke out against holding the competitions in Belarus.
The decision on whether the World Championship will be held in Minsk will be made no later than January 27 at the IIHF Council.
