CCTV kicks off World Cup ad blitz

State broadcaster China Central Television Station officially kicked off an auction on Thursday for advertising during the upcoming 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil.

Two months before the quadrennial soccer extravaganza, CCTV held a fair to preheat the auction. More than 700 representatives from advertising agencies and companies nationwide were in attendance.

"I heard some domestic websites claim they have acquired online broadcasting rights, but I guarantee that this is false information," said CCTV sports chief Jiang Heping, adding that CCTV is the World Cup's sole media rights holder for the Chinese mainland.

Jiang said its World Cup exclusivity means that CCTV will be able to secure substantial advertising investments for the tournament.

Only CCTV will guarantee coverage of all 64 World Cup games, said He Haiming, director of the broadcaster's advertising center.

Many big sports-related names, including Nike, Adidas and Castrol, successfully cornered World Cup advertising slots before the end of last year, according to a CCTV statement.

Tmall will spend 141 million yuan ($22.8 million) to sponsor the top-scorer board, and Nike will pay 46 million yuan for naming rights of a program during the event, the statement said.

More than 620 million Chinese viewers watched games over a month's time during the last World Cup, it said.

CCTV will organize three more fairs next week — in Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.