Baltika becomes official beer supplier to Sochi 2014

Baltika has become the official beer supplier to the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, the organizing committee said in a statement on Thursday. The deal envisages Baltika Breweries, part of the Carlsberg Group, supplying alcoholic beverages at hospitality events in the run up to and at the Games. The sum Baltika paid to become a sponsor, which allows the company to use Olympic branding on their products, was not disclosed. Isaac Sheps, Carlsberg's senior vice president for Eastern Europe and Baltika CEO, called the deal a "great honor" at an unveiling ceremony in Moscow on Thursday. In September, Sochi officials claimed to have set a new record for domestic Olympic sponsorship, with some $1.2 billion raised. Baltika has dominated the domestic beer market since 1996, currently enjoying a reported 38 percent market share. It has 10 breweries across Russia, and has market presence in 70 countries.