LONDON: Business spending on sports sponsorship is set to grow by 4% to £35 billion ($45.73bn) globally in 2019, according to a new report.
But rights-holders, such as leagues, teams or tournaments, are under-exploiting sponsorship deals, according to research from agency Two Circles accessed by the BBC.
According to the study, there could be an extra £14 billion ($18.29bn) in revenues being unrealised because of outdated rights packaging.
It also argues that sport has to move beyond “traditional” sectors – auto, financial services, airlines and gambling.
“Most rights-holders continue to package and sell sponsorship just as they did 20 years ago – offering brand exposure through linear (TV) broadcast coverage as the main benefit for brands,” says Two Circles co-founder and chief executive Gareth Balch.
He said the power of digital marketing was still not being fully utilised by sporting bodies.
UK sports sponsorship by sector
Financial services – 19%
Automotive – 14%
Airline – 13%
Gambling – 12%
Alcohol – 9%
Soft drinks – 7%
Other – 26%
“Rights-holders are adapting,” Balch added, “and we predict a sports sponsorship correction”.
“By embracing the power of digital and data to create sponsorship assets that better satisfy the objectives of brands, rights-holders will realise the true value of their sponsorship businesses.”
Two Circles predicts spend on sponsorship will increase by 6% on average year-on-year between 2020 and 2024 to hit £48 billion ($62.71bn) overall by the end of the period.
