Building engagement and expanding sponsorships are crucial for any business, especially those in the sports sector. For leagues that struggle to become well-known, amplifying their reach to a wider audience is imperative.
This helps to explain the recent partnerships announced between sports leagues and marketing agencies. First, England Netball will work with digital sports agency Seven League to lead a digital transformation for the national governing body with the 2019 Netball World Cup on the horizon.
More specifically, Seven Leagues will work to increase participation, engagement and revenue via digital platforms.
“Working to support NGBs has always been core to our company’s DNA, particularly as digital services offer a great opportunity for all governing bodies and are generally under utilised,” said Seven League chief executive Richard Ayers. “The next couple of years are going to be exciting times for netball and we are all looking forward to working with them.”
Similarly, the Professional Squash Association selected marketing firm Leverage Agency as its exclusive global marketing agency. The New York-based firm aims to increase squash’s global profile while developing sponsorship opportunities. “We look forward to working together with Leverage Agency to expand our sponsorship portfolio and take advantage of previously untapped sponsorship streams with a view to grow the Tour and increase the sport’s profile,” PSA chief commercial officer Tommy Berden said.
Finally, advertising agency Focused Image announced a partnership with the United States Wrestling Foundation, where the D.C.-based company will serve as the Agency of Record. After redesigning the foundation’s website last year, Focused Image will assist USWF in public relations and marketing.
All three of these partnerships have something in common: the sport in need of marketing are not popular around the globe, like football or basketball. By letting marketing professionals work to improve branding and public relations, these leagues will be able to amplify their reach and hopefully add plenty of fans.
“We chose to work with Focused Image because we have witnessed how successful their results-driven campaigns are,” said Jack Clark, the executive director of USWF. “We believe that they are the right agency to drive growth and support our mission, and we’re looking forward to continuing our relationship to further expand awareness and growth of the sport of wrestling throughout our nation.”
These are just the three latest examples of sports leagues turning to marketing agencies for help in reaching more potential consumers. Expect more deals made between these agencies and national governing bodies in the near future.
