Holiday Inn has become the office hotel sponsor of 2012 London Olympic Games in a deal worth about £10m. The move comes as part of a £600m three-year relaunch campaign by its parent company InterContinental Hotels, the world’s largest hotel group by the number of rooms.

Holiday Inn, which has 42 hotels in London, will also help the Olympics organisers with accommodation during the Games. The company is the ninth to sign up as a domestic “tier three” sponsor—the lowest level of support under which a sponsor is allowed to use the Olympic logo in its advertising.

InterContinental is believed to be fronting £5m in capital towards the sponsorship and will provide a further £5m worth of accommodation and services before and during the Olympics.

There are seven domestic “tier one” sponsors, including BP, British Airways, BT and Lloyds TSB.

The Holiday Inn deal comes despite many companies to rein in sports sponsorship and other forms of marketing spend.

The London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games has so far raised almost £500 million from sponsorship out of its £650 million to £700 million target.

InterContinental Hotels, the world’s largest hotel group by the number of rooms, also owns the Crowne Plaza and Hotel Indigo chains.

Last month it reported that revenue per available room fell 13.6 percent in the first quarter of 2009. Operating profits from continuing operations fell by 44 percent.

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