Olympic sponsor Toyota passes on TV commercials in Japan amid lackluster support for the Games

Tokyo 2020 Olympics sponsor Toyota will not run Games-related TV commercials in Japan amid lackluster public support for the Olympics, with two-thirds of Japanese doubting organizers can keep the Games safe during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a local media poll.

Chief Executive Officer of Toyota Motor, Akio Toyoda, and other executives will not attend the opening ceremony, Toyota said on Monday.

"It is true that Toyota will not be attending the opening ceremony, and the decision was made considering various factors including no spectators," a spokesperson said.

Some 60 Japanese corporations who have paid more than $3 billion for sponsorship rights to the postponed 2020 Olympics now face a dilemma of whether or not to tie their brands to an event that has so far failed to win strong public backing.

With just four days before the opening ceremony in Tokyo, 68% of respondents in an Asahi newspaper poll expressed doubt about the ability of Olympic organizers to control coronavirus infections, with 55% saying they were opposed to the Games going ahead.

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