The Awards were introduced by SportBusiness Group to recognise the increasingly important role that an effective online presence plays in all areas of sport and commerce. These range from attracting and engaging fans to delivering profile for sponsors and cost-effective revenue generation through ticket and merchandise sales. Chelsea won the overall Award by a single point.
Awards were made in six categories: Content; Community; Style; Monetisation; Partnership Activation and Attracting New Fans. Accumulated scores across the categories determined the overall winner of the Ultimate Sports Website Award 2009.
Within each category, Awards were made for Club or team Sites; Event Sites; federation or League Site and Generic site or portal. Chelsea also won the Club/Team Awards in the Style and Community categories with Manchester United taking the honours for Content, Monetisation and Partnership activation.
Cas Knight, managing director of Chelsea Digital Media, accepted the award from SportBusiness Group editorial director, Kevin Roberts, and said Chelsea was delighted to have won the award. "This award recognizes the increasingly important role that our website plays in the business of Chelsea FC. Our online operation is hugely important in developing our international fan base and makes a major contribution in terms of our communication with fans, our partnerships and our ticketing operation. Perform, our digital media partner, has enabled us to push technical, functional and editorial boundaries that mean chelseafc.com is always evolving as a product."
Other multi-award winners were London 2012 - which took the Award for Style and Partnership Activation in the event site sector, Euro 2008, which was successful in the Content and Attracting New Fans categories, also for the events sector. The World Rally Championship won the Federation/League Award for Content and Community and Sky Sports which won Awards for Style and Partnership Activation in the Generic/Portal sector.
Kevin Roberts, SportBusiness Group’s editorial director said: “Since SportBusiness International’s launch in 1996 we have covered the development of sports websites at every step. Today they are at the very core of many sports clubs and events, providing a 24/7 interface with fans and creating a real sense of community and belonging and reaching every part of the world. The best websites have changed the way that the world of sport relates and reacts to its customers…the fans.”
The Ultimate Sports Websites Awards are based on the findings of a new SportBusiness report by Rachael Church-Sanders. ‘Ultimate Sports Websites: Creating a Winning Online Proposition for Sport’ provides a ‘how to’ guide to creating a successful and profitable sports website.
It shows the latest website monetisation strategies and backs them up with case studies as well as ranking the very best sports websites worldwide. For an executive summary or more information on the report, please contact Adam Barker, Information Sales Manager, SportBusiness Group: adam.barker@sportbusiness.com +44 (0) 207954 3481
For more information on the Awards, please contact Phil Savage, Publishing Director, SportBusiness Group: phil.savage@sportbusiness.com +44 (0) 207 954 3430
Top 10 - Ultimate Sports Websites 2009
1 Chelsea
2 Manchester United
3 WRC
4 NBA
5 Euro 2008
6 Cricinfo
7 Sky Sports
8 Super Bowl
9 PGA TOUR
10 Australian Grand Prix
Category Winners - Ultimate Sports Websites 2009
Award for best site content
Winner, Club or Team Site: Manchester United*
Winner, Event Site: Euro 2008*
Winner, Federation or League Site: WRC
Winner, Generic or Portal: Cricinfo*
Asterisk (*) denotes winners of multiple awards
Award for best site community
Winner, Club or Team Site: Chelsea FC*
Winner, Event Site: US Masters
Winner, Federation or League Site: WRC*
Winner, Generic or Portal: Footymad
Asterisk (*) denotes winners of multiple awards
Award for best site style
Winner, Club or Team Site: Chelsea FC*
Winner, Event Site: London 2012*
Winner, Federation or League Site: AFL
Winner, Generic or Portal:l Sky Sports*
Asterisk (*) denotes winners of multiple awards
Award for best site monetisation
Winner, Club or Team Site: Manchester United*
Winner, Event Site: Superbowl
Winner, Federation or League Site: NBA
Winner, Generic or Portal: Football 365
Asterisk (*) denotes winners of multiple awards
Award for best partnership activation
Winner, Club or Team Site: Manchester United*
Winner, Event Site: London 2012*
Winner, Federation or League Site: The Football League
Winner, Generic or Portal: Sky Sports*
Asterisk (*) denotes winners of multiple awards
Award for best site for attracting new fans
Winner, Club or Team Site: Barcelona
Winner, Event Site: Euro 2008*
Winner, Federation or League Site: UEFA*
Winner, Generic or Portal: CricInfo*
Asterisk (*) denotes winners of multiple awards
