It’s the summer of sports – and sponsorship

Following Uefa Euro 2024, and Paris opening the Olympics and Paralympic Games this month, the stage is set for unprecedented global viewership and audience engagement. The Olympics opening ceremony alone was expected to be watched by one billion people around the globe. Alongside many other events, this presents vast opportunities for brands looking to enhance equity via association, through tapping into a global passion for sport – before, during, and after competitions.

For marketers, this is a perfect time to harness the universal language of sport, and its unique ability to unite people. With national teams in the spotlight, valuable sponsorship opportunities, and the advent of athlete influencers, the most astute brands will be those that connect and engage with their audiences on a community-centric and personal level, capturing sport’s spirit of pride, resilience, and determination.

Win gold

Sports sponsorship is a $66 billion industry globally. A worldwide phenomenon that is expanding its horizons like never before with the market expecting to grow to a staggering $108 billion by 2030. This globalization of sport is pushing boundaries and breaking geographical barriers. The Premier League – the English football league system – being a perfect example.

US leagues are demonstrating this with an increasing number of international events. Major League Baseball just completed a World Tour in Korea, and held its annual series in London. This summer, a World Cup Cricket match also took place in the New York area – a testament to the growing popularity of sports outside of their traditional strongholds.

Athletes now have enormous social media followings and powerful personal brands beyond their sport. When testing traditional social media influencers and athlete influencers in the same campaign, brands found that athlete partners had upwards of 2.5 times higher engagement rates and reached an average of 23% more of their followers per social post.

What’s more, fans of athletes are 164% more likely to purchase a product after an athlete they follow mentions it. Leading brands are seeing over seven times return-on-investment on marketing campaigns with athletes. It’s worth thinking about the opportunities presented here to connect with audiences in more personal, authentic ways.

Sponsorship deals in women’s professional sports have also risen by more than 22% year-on-year with 84% of general sports fans now interested in women’s sport. Think how you can leverage untapped audiences to improve both brand image and connection with consumers.

Viewing platform

The explosion of viewing platforms, ranging from in-person attendance to streaming across multiple devices, has allowed brands to create deeper connections and reach more people. Similarly, the streaming revolution has broadened audiences beyond traditional sports fans – Netflix’s Formula 1 series ‘Drive to Survive’ being exemplary.

Social media and creator content has enabled brands to get closer to fans. YouTube is now used to access both official sports and creator content for post-game analysis and commentary. Undoubtedly, the fandom and fanfares that follow sporting events are amazing opportunities to tap into. According to Ad Age, Super Bowl 2024 ads and teasers on YouTube garnered more than 1 billion views, with the 2024 Super Bowl ads achieving millions of shares.

Brands today are diving headfirst into the world of grassroots sports, encouraging more physical activity, and promoting community engagement. This isn’t merely a trend; it’s a win-win strategy that rides on the brand rub effect, enhancing public image while fostering local talent.

Sporting bodies are also looking to understand the participant experience to maximize involvement at a local level. Brands need to understand how to drive sport participation, target the right audiences, design communication that connects, create sports brands, and link to key sporting events.

So, with the Olympics upon us, how are you leveraging these trends to enhance your brand equity?