The DataPOWA view on the most important talking points in the worlds of sport sponsorship and digital.
NBA TEAMS’ SPONSORSHIP GOES GLOBAL
From next season onwards, NBA teams will be able to sell sponsorship rights in international territories for the first time.
Up until now, the league itself has controlled deals outside the US and Canada, but reports suggest that a three-year trial will be put in place to get a feel for how teams fare on their own.
As part of the trial, teams will be able to sell global marketing rights to two current or new sponsors outside of the US and Canada, but sponsors will only be able to use non-game content, such behind-the-scenes features.
The NBA’s president of team marketing and chief innovation officer Amy Brooks explained that the new approach is designed to “take advantage of the global reach of team partners and to create more targeted non-game content.”
Last year it was estimated that a record $1.12 billion is now being spent on NBA sponsorships.
For more on this story, please visit Sports Pro Media
THIS VAR BREAK IS BROUGHT TO YOU BY…
FIFA is exploring the sponsorship potential afforded by ‘video assistant referee’ (VAR) tech, by considering lucrative rights of up to £100m for the unscripted match breaks.
The FT (via The Drum) reports that multiple sponsors have approached FIFA about the opportunities during the breaks in play to allow referees to review footage of contentious moments.
It is calculated that VAR breaks accounted for some 27 minutes of screen time during the 2018 World Cup, a significant chunk of squandered airtime which can command as much as £600k per minute from advertisers.
For more on this story, please visit The Drum
SKIPPER MAKES BIG PLANS FOR DAZN
Perform Group executive chairman John Skipper is aiming to make its sports streaming service DAZN as big as Netflix.
The former ESPN president was hired last May to drive the emerging streaming platform forward and has already enjoyed tremendous success in a short period of time.
DAZN shows top tier sporting events like the English Premier League in key territories such as Germany and Japan and in June signed up Cristiano Ronaldo as its first global ambassador.
Skipper believes this is only the beginning, and that the innovations and flexibility streaming offers promise a bright future ahead.
“This was potentially a very big opportunity because of first-mover advantage,” he tells Forbes. “I think there is the possibility of building a company with a very significant value.
“The pay TV model is the best model for media in the history of the universe. Will OTT be better? In some ways, yes. It will be better mostly because of interactivity and the ability to not be constrained by a linear stream.”
For more on this story, please visit Forbes
BBC AND BT SIGN MLB DEAL
The BBC and BT Sport have signed broadcast deals with Major League Baseball that include coverage of the games that will be played in London.
BT Sport has extended its current contract for another two years, while the BBC has signed a streaming-only agreement that means the forthcoming London ties can be shown on the BBC Sport website and iPlayer.
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said that the deals will help the sport grow outside of the US.
“Reaching agreements with two of the UK’s premier broadcasters is an important milestone as the anticipation and excitement for the Mitel & MLB Present London Series continues to grow.
“We’re looking forward with working with both BBC and BT Sport to bring the best possible presentation of our sport to viewers in the UK.”
For more on this story, please visit BBC Sport
LIONESSES READY TO ROAR
With the World Cup on its way, England’s Women’s football team has attracted a wide range of commercial interest, the FA’s head of marketing Georgina Lewis has explained.
Lucozade, Boots and Budweiser have all signed deals with the Lionesses in recent months, and Lewis has said that many more brands are looking to get involved too.
“As far as incoming calls in terms of wanting to work with us this summer, honestly it’s probably higher than it was last year for the men’s World Cup, the number of publishers, media outlets, brands etc.”
Marzena Bogdanowicz, the FA’s head of commercial and marketing for women’s soccer, added: “There’s a perfect storm happening, and the whole piece generally across the nation on gender equality has just raised the interest, and that has created this wave that is now coming to a tipping point, and I think everyone’s taking note.”
“I think that’s what brands are saying, that they want to be part of this. The phones have started to ring quite a bit.”
For more on this story, please visit Sports Pro Media
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