Sponsorship & Marketing
Features
Sebastian Page | Son’s success underlines enduring value of Asian players for European football
Sebastian Page, account director at CSM Hong Kong, says Tottenham Hotspur's Son Heung Min's on-and-off-pitch success underlines the special value of Asian stars in European football
NBA gains more sponsors than it loses in year after the shutdown
The NBA signed up more sponsors than it lost after the shutdown in March 2020
Innovation and safety around the ‘NBA Bubble’ enhanced the league’s reputation
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Saudi city of NEOM reboots its sponsorship strategy with Mercedes EQ team deal
This weekend's Diriyah E-Prix offers an opportunity for Saudi future-city project NEOM to reboot its sponsorship strategy after it lost two key deals in the esports sector. But will a partnership with the Mercedes EQ team succeed in repositioning the Kingdom? Ben Cronin talks to sports partnership director Neal Coupland.
O2, Allianz among the highlights as RFU maintains deal flow even as lockdowns bites
Rugby Football Union chief commercial and marketing officer Simon Massie-Taylor explains how the organisation has kept sponsorship deals flowing, even while fans have been locked out of England international games. Matthew Williams reports.
“We succeed or we fail together” | Inside CVC’s $100m volleyball deal
Matthew Glendinning looks at the ambitions the International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) has for the future of the sport, which recently benefited from a significant investment from venture capital firm CVC Capital Partners.
Four French federations pay compensation after snubbing Le Coq Sportif for Paris 2024
Four of France’s flagship national sport federations have opted to utilise their own kit suppliers at the Paris 2024 Olympics rather than Le Coq Sportif, the central kit supplier signed up by the Paris 2…
Ringier seeks new Challenge League title sponsor as Brack.ch signals exit
Swiss e-commerce company Brack.ch has decided not to extend its long-running title sponsorship of the Challenge League, the second-highest division in Swiss club football
Delhi Capitals extend with co-owner JSW Group as title sponsor
Cricket's Indian Premier League franchise Delhi Capitals has signed a deal to make its co-owners JSW Group the team's principal sponsor
Shimano extends Giro backing, Banca Ifis sponsors Italian classics
Japanese bicycle component manufacturer Shimano has renewed its support of the Giro d’Italia cycling event after extending an agreement with race organiser RCS Sport.
Terrence Burns | Brands need to seize 2026 World Cup and 2028 Olympics opportunities now
Terrence Burns, Olympic and global sports marketing veteran, argues that the sooner US brands seize on the opportunities presented by two major events in their own backyard, the greater their chances for success
Martyn Turze | Following your team during Covid-19
Martyn Turze, consumer research account director, Publicis Sport & Entertainment, has monitored the attitudes of the agency’s personnel to the live sports lockdown in the UK and uncovered 10 key areas of changed experience
Sampson Yimer | US sports fans at tension point on return to live events
Last weekend’s NFL Super Bowl highlighted the tension point between the return of fans to live sporting events and the dangers inherent in that return. Sampson Yimer, vice-president, sponsorship consulting at Momentum Worldwide, looks at the pros and cons, backed by the agency’s proprietary study on fan sentiment.
Yao Williams | The future of athlete endorsements
Yao Williams, head of international at the A1 Partner agency, explains how athletes can work with brands to become movers for social good and calls for the industry itself to become more progressive during this period of change.
After sponsorship-fuelled expansion in US, Hyperice sets sights on international markets
Matthew Glendinning talks to Hyperice chief executive Jim Huether about the ambitions of the recovery tech company, and how it is looking to raise 50 per cent of its revenue from international markets in the next three years.
Korean baseball club sale raises questions over traditional company patronage model
SportBusiness looks at the sale of Korean KBO baseball league club SK Wyverns by telco SK Telecom to the retail group Shinsegae, and why this appears to be a departure from the usual protocol in the Korean world of company-owned professional sports teams.
VAR sponsorship included in Lega Serie A category revamp
Lega Serie A has been working to restructure its commercial and marketing operation over the last 12 months. In an exclusive interview, commercial director Michele Ciccarese outlines how sponsorship will take shape under the new structure.
NHL helmet sponsors offer stop-gap solution – and insights about the future
Keith Wachtel, NHL's chief business officer, speaks to SportBusiness about the wider strategy behind the league's new division and helmet sponsorships for the 2020-21 season.
Football Association’s Swarbrick looks for silver lining in “tough” 2021
Matthew Glendinning talks to Kathryn Swarbrick, the FA’s commercial and marketing director, about what is on the horizon for English football's governing body as it continues to develop its brand strategy amid the pandemic.
Looking back, looking forward – Apac industry insiders’ reflections on the year past and hopes for 2021
Asia-Pacific sports industry insiders share their personal reflections on a tumultuous 2020, and their hopes and ambitions for the year ahead.
Matt Vandrau | A year of self-reflection for the industry
Matt Vandrau, group chief executive, CSM Sport & Entertainment, says one of the biggest changes brought about by this year’s pandemic was the reappraisal of rights values by clients
Sports sponsorship industry proves its mettle in the year of the pandemic
Rights-holders and sponsors showed differing levels of flexibility this year as the Covid-19 pandemic forced them to review contractual obligations and rights commitments. SportBusiness Sponsorship editor Matthew Glendinning looks at the way the industry responded to the crisis
2020 | The best comebacks and success stories from a challenging year
SportBusiness regional editors Eric Fisher, Kevin McCullagh and Ben Cronin look back at those rights-holders and properties that adapted best to a year of disruption for the sports industry
EFL’s iFollow experiment unlikely to inform future media strategy, says commercial chief
Ben Wright, chief commercial officer for the English Football League, explains what the league has learnt from streaming more games on its iFollow service and how the league has targeted the fast-food sector to shore up revenues during this year's lockdown
Chinese FA’s new leadership takes fresh aim at hosting Fifa World Cup
SportBusiness speaks to Louis Liu, secretary general of the Chinese Football Association, about China's ambitions to become a football superpower.
Bobbie Ttooulis | Making sure sports brands deliver on online sales
Bobbie Ttooulis, executive director of shipping and e-commerce delivery company, Global Freight Solutions, says sports merchandising needs careful management at peak sales periods, like kit launches and Christmas.
‘We’re got to take the Aston Martin brand to the next level’ | Jeff Slack, Racing Point F1
Jefferson Slack represented some of the world’s leading sports talent, ran Serie A giants Inter Milan and headed IMG’s football division during the first three decades of his career. Now
R&A keeps faith in sponsors and strategy in turbulent year
The R&A’s maintenance of event cancellation insurance “slightly eased” the burden of lost income from the cancellation of this year’s Open and Senior Open
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Nostalgia, internet, and investment | How Covid-19 fueled a sports trading card boom
Jason Howarth, Panini America's vice-president of marketing, tells SportBusiness how the industry has looked to capitalize on the rising popularity and value of trading cards