Sports Seconds: A different kind of sponsorship scandal
Sport sponsorship: Great business tool or manipulative practice towards fans?
Nike here. Budweiser there. Sponsorship is literally everywhere in the world of sports.
An evident trend in professional and amateur sports alike, sponsorship is becoming a vital tool for every sport organization and corporate business in Canada and the world.
The Canadian Colleges Athletic Association (CCAA) recently announced a one-year partnership with PING Canada. The agreement states that PING Canada will act as the title sponsor for the CCAA Golf Open Championships, and will continue to be advocates for collegiate golf in Canada.
In a recent article that I wrote, I stated that Fanshawe Athletics will outfit all of their inter-collegiate teams with Adidas apparel, after reaching a sponsorship agreement with the company.
All this talk of sponsors got me thinking if I really agreed with the concept.
The main idea of sponsorship is that of a two-way street.
The organization will give something, such as rink board space in a National Hockey League arena, and the sponsor will receive some type of benefit in return; having their logo displayed to the thousands of fans coming to games.
The sponsor will pay for whatever benefit they receive, in this case the rink board space, and the organization can use the money for whatever purpose they wish. The NHL organization could use it to sign top free agents, and subsequently make their team more marketable and more successful.
The notion is very smart in terms of business, but what about the fans?
Sponsors within the sports world will bombard fans through various channels with their company brand, image, and message. Commercials during telecasts will try to provoke you to buy their products, and sponsors logos will be in fans faces constantly while at an arena.
During a conference I attended this past weekend, Peter Restivo, the keynote speaker, mentioned that during a flight this past summer he saw an advertisement for Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith on the paper bags that hung on the rear of every seat.
Yes, those would be the barf bags.
Although not a sports example, the notion remains the same in stadiums and arenas across North America.
While standing in front of a urinal in the Air Canada Centre, you will undoubtedly be staring at a poster enticing you to buy more Miller Genuine Draft or that you will receive a free garlic dipping sauce with the purchase of a slice from Pizza Pizza.
You can't even watch your favourite NASCAR driver on television without being fed the message and image of a corporate sponsor.
The executives at Tide laundry detergent know that Average Joe and his wife will sit down and watch NASCAR on Sunday afternoon. They will cheer on Rich Craven in the #32 Tide car, and when they go grocery shopping later in the week they will choose Tide rather then Cheer, or any other leading detergent.
The Tide brand and image will be so infixed in their minds that they will attribute the images of winning, and good feelings they received from the race, and almost subconsciously make the purchase. That is what Tide hopes for anyway.
Sports fans must be aware of these companies' intentions, and make informed decisions on certain things. Don't buy Sprite just because Lebron James says so.
There is no question that sports sponsorship is very valuable in terms of creating revenue for organizations. Franchises can use this money to improve their team, refurbish their stadiums, and overall enhance the viewing pleasure for their fans.
As long as advertisements, marketing campaigns, or promotional activities by the sponsoring companies do not hinder the actual product on the ice, court, or field, or do not negatively affect the integrity of the sport, then I feel sport sponsorship is a very beneficial concept.
Nike here. Budweiser there. Sponsorship is literally everywhere in the world of sports.
An evident trend in professional and amateur sports alike, sponsorship is becoming a vital tool for every sport organization and corporate business in Canada and the world.
The Canadian Colleges Athletic Association (CCAA) recently announced a one-year partnership with PING Canada. The agreement states that PING Canada will act as the title sponsor for the CCAA Golf Open Championships, and will continue to be advocates for collegiate golf in Canada.
In a recent article that I wrote, I stated that Fanshawe Athletics will outfit all of their inter-collegiate teams with Adidas apparel, after reaching a sponsorship agreement with the company.
All this talk of sponsors got me thinking if I really agreed with the concept.
The main idea of sponsorship is that of a two-way street.
The organization will give something, such as rink board space in a National Hockey League arena, and the sponsor will receive some type of benefit in return; having their logo displayed to the thousands of fans coming to games.
The sponsor will pay for whatever benefit they receive, in this case the rink board space, and the organization can use the money for whatever purpose they wish. The NHL organization could use it to sign top free agents, and subsequently make their team more marketable and more successful.
The notion is very smart in terms of business, but what about the fans?
Sponsors within the sports world will bombard fans through various channels with their company brand, image, and message. Commercials during telecasts will try to provoke you to buy their products, and sponsors logos will be in fans faces constantly while at an arena.
During a conference I attended this past weekend, Peter Restivo, the keynote speaker, mentioned that during a flight this past summer he saw an advertisement for Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith on the paper bags that hung on the rear of every seat.
Yes, those would be the barf bags.
Although not a sports example, the notion remains the same in stadiums and arenas across North America.
While standing in front of a urinal in the Air Canada Centre, you will undoubtedly be staring at a poster enticing you to buy more Miller Genuine Draft or that you will receive a free garlic dipping sauce with the purchase of a slice from Pizza Pizza.
You can't even watch your favourite NASCAR driver on television without being fed the message and image of a corporate sponsor.
The executives at Tide laundry detergent know that Average Joe and his wife will sit down and watch NASCAR on Sunday afternoon. They will cheer on Rich Craven in the #32 Tide car, and when they go grocery shopping later in the week they will choose Tide rather then Cheer, or any other leading detergent.
The Tide brand and image will be so infixed in their minds that they will attribute the images of winning, and good feelings they received from the race, and almost subconsciously make the purchase. That is what Tide hopes for anyway.
Sports fans must be aware of these companies' intentions, and make informed decisions on certain things. Don't buy Sprite just because Lebron James says so.
There is no question that sports sponsorship is very valuable in terms of creating revenue for organizations. Franchises can use this money to improve their team, refurbish their stadiums, and overall enhance the viewing pleasure for their fans.
As long as advertisements, marketing campaigns, or promotional activities by the sponsoring companies do not hinder the actual product on the ice, court, or field, or do not negatively affect the integrity of the sport, then I feel sport sponsorship is a very beneficial concept.
