Much of the industry is moving from Las Vegas to Indy this week, but a snowstorm in the East is complicating things. Did anyone get a hat trick by bypassing the Daytona 500 on Sunday?
“You will ultimately be defined by the sum of your reactions to situations, circumstances, and events that you could not possibly have foreseen and, in fact, probably could not have even imagined. So just keep your eyes on the course. Don't let go and be ready to go there.”Choose different directions depending on crisis and opportunity.” — Late NBA Commissioner david stern
LAS VEGAS — Despite other reports, Sportfive did support Emirates in its recent partnership with the NBA. It's a big enough deal that it aroused jealousy from NFL marketers in Las Vegas in the lead-up to the Super Bowl. It's a dynamic we haven't seen in decades. Hats off to both.
This seems to me to be the most important win for Sportfive in a while. A few leading questions from sponsorship experts (I will forever boycott that dreaded “p-word”) dominated the chatter of the Las Vegas party scene.
- Will Sportfive also handle Emirates activations? Sources say that is yet to be decided. Her RFP for activation is not yet available.
- Why do sponsors announce non-NFL deals on the Thursday before the Super Bowl? It's a small sample size, to be sure, but the heads of the largest sports agencies were unaware of the deal this week. “I don't know who decided on the timing, unless it was an intention not to draw attention,” said another veteran agency type over the cacophony at the Klutch Sports and DraftKings soirée at the Venetian on Saturday. said. Two agency officials also suggested last week that Emirates, which has executives in Las Vegas, wanted to use the deal as social currency within the industry. If that's true, your B2B strategy has been a success.
Still, it feels like the greater significance of the Emirates deal is that it marks perhaps the most high-profile deployment of Middle Eastern sponsorship money to date for the American stick-and-ball sport (Emirates is the US Open series and has sponsor facilities such as USA Rugby)). Sovereign funds have already acquired minority stakes in North America (see Monumental Sports & Entertainment), and of course this practice is commonplace in Europe. But there is no ebb and flow in professional sports, as there are few factors more catalytic than “new money.” The bigger question is when and if Middle Eastern currencies will become new cryptocurrencies.
Will the aviation division return to the major leagues?
Generally reliable sources put Emirates' spending at more than $50 million, but it also raises questions about whether the travel category has fully recovered from the dire battle with the coronavirus. So does the NBA-Emirate deal point to a Back to the Future scenario where all leagues end up with airline sponsorship? Given the regional nature of most carriers, team sponsorship has become something of a “must have.”
The NBA's last air sponsor was Southwest Airlines about 15 years ago. The NFL had a 10-year rights agreement with Southwest that ended in 2007. With more and more offshore matches being scheduled in each league, the need is increasing.
There is new signage being developed for the opening of the NASCAR season this week.
ANC's track-facing pit box unique LED sign, which debuted at Sunday's Daytona 500, features four Joe Gibbs racing cars from Bass Pro Shops, Interstate Battery, Monster Energy and DeWalt, including Denny Hamlin (No. 11) , Martin Truex Jr.). (19th place), Christopher Bell (20th place), Ty Gibbs (54th place).
This is the first time Daytona will allow LED signage to be installed in the pit box.
The four digital displays are controlled remotely by ANC. Full-color images, graphics, and text are projected onto over 100 square feet of LED displays. The billboard is the result of a collaboration between JGR and ANC's parent company, C10 Media. All advertising revenue from signage will be donated to JGR.
Last year, C10 entered Hamlin's No. 11 car in eight races with the help of Mavis Tire and Brakes.
Daytona allows LED pit box advertising for the first time, JGR plans to use it this weekend
- Elevate is expanding its agency capabilities with the addition of Fenway Sports Group's brand consulting division. Industry sources say about five agencies have added stress to FSG's consulting group over the past three months. The people said they had agreed to a deal but it was not fully completed.
- The Clippers have welcomed Lexus as the team's fifth founding sponsor at the new Intuit Dome, a deal that also includes title sponsor of the new Lexus Courtside Lounge created by renowned interior designer Rita Koenig. SBJ's Tom Friend points out. The deal extends the previous nine-year relationship between the brand and the team.
- Tiger Woods and TaylorMade Golf have announced Sunday Red, a new golf apparel and lifestyle brand, reports SBJ's Chris Smith. The deal is a landmark move for Woods, who parted ways with Nike last month after 27 years.
- Friend also reports that the NBA Crossover Fan Fest event in Indianapolis will be even more of a partner fest this year, with a record 40+ companies in activations and the league already We call it the greatest intersection of art, fashion, music, technology, and entertainment. -Star Game History.
- The Big Ten and BTN have renewed a multi-year agreement with TIAA as the conference's official retirement planning services sponsor, SBJ's Ben Portnoy reported.
- The NWSL has a multi-year sponsorship deal with Google that will make Pixel the soccer league's official phone and sponsor for the playoffs and championships, SBJ's Alex Silverman noted.
- Corn-Nuts, owned by Hormel, expands its sponsorship with the American Cornhole League with a two-year agreement that makes the brand the official jersey sponsor of the ACL Team Series and provides further activation around the league's events. SBJ's Wes Sanderson points out.
