Exxon Mobil becomes the new Presenting Sponsor of the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta

“When 13 hot air balloons first launched in Coronado Mall in 1972, we knew it was the beginning of something special,” said Al Tetrault, president of Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta.

Hundreds of thousands of people travel to Albuquerque each year to experience the magic of hundreds of hot air balloons that fly.

“Balloon Fiesta, perhaps better than any other event, shows the true beauty of the Land of Enchantment,” said Rick Cannon, Exxon Mobile’s executive director of production.

As the city approaches the 50th Anniversary of the Balloon Fiesta this October, there will be a new title sponsor driving the event, Exxon Mobile.

After three years of sponsoring the Balloon Fiesta, the oil company has signed up to be the presenting sponsor of the next three Balloon Fiesta events. Its predecessor, Canon, did not part with the Balloon Fiesta on good terms.

Canon filed a lawsuit against the Balloon Fiesta in May 2021. The dispute was about whether the Balloon Fiesta broke its contract with the company by not holding an event in 2020. This lawsuit was settled out of court in November. It’s not clear how much the Balloon Fiesta paid Canon.

“Together with our new presenting sponsor, we hope to show the world an even better fiesta and bring even more economic benefits to New Mexico,” said Tetrault.

According to Balloon Fiesta officials, the event grossed nearly $ 187 million for the state over nine days in 2019. The majority of them came from visitors from abroad.

Balloon Fiesta officials say that in 2019, 71% of Balloon Fiesta attendees were from overseas.