The 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics has, as have all other Olympics, received its share of protests long before the games commence. It’s a good bet that the protests will intensify as the Feb. 6 opening ceremony draws closer and that protests will be joined by controversies that occur during the competition. The savvy PR team should have developed plans that protect sponsors in the event that they are targeted by protesters.

As a PR practitioner who has worked on Olympic campaigns for brands and directly for American and foreign government Olympic organizations, I’ve been called upon to suggest ways of combating protests. What I tell clients is that there is no way to prevent protests, just like there is no way to predict which totalitarian country will be awarded the 2036 Summer Games. My bet is Saudi Arabia. But there are ways to prepare for protests. And for a brand that wants to take a stand, protests can work to the brand’s advantage.

By now, brands that sponsor the Olympics should have their 2026 plans finalized or near completion. Those plans should include strategies on how to prepare a client against a potential........

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