Sponsorship Revenue Impact

NFL teams generated $2.5B in sponsorship revenue from over 2,000 brands—here are some of the things I unpacked that helped lead to this historic growth: 1️⃣ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐢𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐌𝐢𝐜𝐫𝐨-𝐂𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 & 𝐍𝐨𝐧-𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 🏈 The Construction & Industrial sector has historically been a highly active internationally (especially the EPL) but relatively quiet in U.S. sports—until now. This year, we saw a significant jump within this sector. 🏈 Ready-to-drink (RTD) alcohol brands have surged, with 1/3rd of teams with deals working with more than one brand. 🏈 The NFL’s vast fan base means some brands can’t always afford to reach everyone—so the league has been smart in designing segmented audience strategies that allow brands to optimally engage specific audiences. 2️⃣ 𝐀𝐭𝐡𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐁𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦 NFL Players have more endorsements than any other sport, acting as a gateway for brands entering the league. This lowers the barrier to entry, allowing brands to A/B test content, iterate quickly, and refine messaging before committing to larger team deals. The result is a thriving ecosystem where athlete partnerships fuel more sponsorship opportunities. 3️⃣ 𝐆𝐥𝐨𝐛𝐚𝐥 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐬 𝐔𝐧𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐮𝐞 With international expansion, teams now offer a broader marketing platform for brands, opening the door to entirely new deals. This year alone, we saw 68 brands activate internationally, proving the model out. 4️⃣ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐡𝐢𝐟𝐭 𝐓𝐨𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 & 𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥 Sponsorships are no longer just about logos on a stadium wall—they’re about embedding brands into the fan experience. Teams and brands are working together to create meaningful, culturally relevant activations, including: ✔ Player arrivals as branded moments ✔ Sustainability and causes ✔ Second-chance sweepstakes and games ✔ Social content and product integrations 5️⃣ 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐓𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 The entire sponsorship industry is expanding, and the NFL benefited from the influx of new marketing dollars. In 4 years, the volume of teams, events and athlete deals has more than doubled. This means more sellers in the market, more conversations with brands, and more dollars reallocated into sponsorship as a critical marketing channel—benefiting not just the NFL, but the entire industry. I’ve spoken with multiple brand partners who feel that teams are treating them as true collaborators, rather than just sponsors—taking a first-principles approach to partnership design that is redefining the space. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐢𝐠 𝐏𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞: 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐅𝐋 𝐈𝐬 𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐚 365-𝐃𝐚𝐲, 360-𝐃𝐞𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 Over time, the NFL has evolved into a year-round, multi-dimensional commercial powerhouse, where brands engage fans across multiple platforms, markets, and moments—both in and out of the stadium.

A multi-million euro sponsorship, yet no one could answer a simple question. That’s when it all clicked for me. Just over a year ago, I was at an RSC Anderlecht game, invited by a sponsor, when I asked a simple question: “You’re spending millions on this partnership, but do you know how many fans are actually a customers? How much revenue they generate for you? And if they are truly spending more?” The response? Silence. Uncertainty. No clear answer. That was the moment I realized that sponsorships have a measurement problem. For years, sponsorships have been judged almost solely on: ❌ Brand awareness instead of real business impact ❌ Brand impact reports instead of actual differences in conversion and loyalty The reality? Most sponsors don’t actually know if their investment is driving sales—or at least, they can’t quantify it. Rights holders, in turn, struggle to prove sponsorship value beyond “we think this many people saw your logo.” It’s an outdated way of thinking. It’s certainly not the full picture. And it makes justifying multi-million-euro sponsorships incredibly difficult. That’s where we changed everything. We built a platform that makes sponsorship metrics measurable—something that was considered impossible in the past. ✅ Match fan data with sponsor data without sharing raw information ✅ Measure actual impact—conversion, revenue generated, spending behavior, and loyalty ✅ Optimize ROI by using combined data to segment, target, and hyper-personalize campaigns A year ago, our data clean room was designed for general marketing purposes. But after that conversation with the sponsor, we shifted our focus. Fast forward one year: We went from exploring the market to working with KAA Gent, RSCA, KV Mechelen, and OH Leuven, with two more major clubs in the pipeline and awesome brands. We’re now expanding into the Netherlands and partnering with international agencies. The biggest lesson? When you turn sponsorships from a brand awareness expense into a measurable channel that drives growth, people take notice. Something big is coming in two weeks. Any guesses? DAZN you got extra sponsorship impressions because of me! #sponsorships #datacleanroom #sportsmarketing

🔥 Sponsorship ROI Just Got Real — If You’re Advertising in Sports Why guess at impact when you can measure it? A new case study with Mobil 1 and Amazon Ads shows sports sponsorship is evolving from brand exposure to trackable commerce performance. 🔍 What Happened: • Mobil 1 used Amazon’s shoppable ad formats during NASCAR events, sending fans directly to a customized Amazon storefront. The result? A significant lift in sales of their premium synthetic product. • They also leveraged Amazon’s first-party retail data to retarget NASCAR viewers throughout the season — a strategy that bridged awareness and conversion unlike linear media could. 📈 What It Means: 1. Sponsorships Can Be Measured Like Ads Amazon Ads began treating sponsorship units—on-screen branding, presenting spots—with the same first-party measurement rigor they use for 30-second ads. That brings accountability to what used to be a fuzzy investment. 2. Commerce + Content = Direct Path to Purchase By merging live sports content with a shoppable path, Mobil 1 clicked through from emotion to transaction in real-time. 3. Shift Toward Performance-Driven Partnerships According to a sports-marketing expert from Strive Sponsorship, ROI isn’t just a buzzword anymore—it’s baked into deals. Yet brand equity metrics still matter: emotional resonance needs to be paired with conversion. 🚀 Why Marketers Should Pivot: • Get measurable results — If you’re sponsoring sports, ask: “Can I track impact on sales the same way I do digital display?” • Experiment with performance-first sponsorships — Especially with new platforms like Amazon, where commerce and content converge. • Balance brand and performance — Don’t ditch awareness metrics. Build campaigns that connect emotionally and convert consistently. • Have you worked with sponsorship deals that include measurable e-commerce outcomes? • What’s your view: will Amazon’s hybrid sponsorship+retargeting model become the norm? • For those measuring ROI, how do you balance awareness vs. purchase impact? 🏁 Bottom Line: This isn’t just a NASCAR play—it’s a case study in how sports sponsorship can evolve into a full-funnel, measurable performance channel. As digital marketing continues blending with commerce, brands that demand accountability will pull ahead. #SportsMarketing #SponsorshipROI #CTV #AmazonAds #PerformanceMarketing #NASCAR

⚽️ Premier League Sponsorship Revenue: A Deep Dive (2000–2025)! by Sponsorlytix 💰 The Premier League is the most valuable football league in the world—it’s a financial titan! We’ve analyzed sponsorship revenues for some of the biggest clubs from 2000 to 2025. 📊 Let’s break it down! 🔵 Manchester City skyrocketed from £5M in 2000 to an estimated £266.7M by 2025! Their deal with Etihad (£67.5M/year in 2024/25) and sleeve sponsor OKX (£55M) are among the league’s biggest, reflecting their on-pitch success and Abu Dhabi-backed commercial strategy. Fun fact: City’s commercial revenue jumped from £24M in 2009 to £250M by 2023—a 1177% increase! 🚀 🔴 Manchester United started at £10M in 2000, reaching £200M by 2025, with a massive portfolio. Despite their on-pitch struggles, their global fanbase (173M social followers!) makes them a sponsorship magnet. Their TeamViewer deal (£47M/year) is undervalued by £17.5M, but new Snapdragon partnerships are boosting revenue! ⭐ 🔵 Chelsea grew from £8M in 2000 to £159M by 2025, but they’ve hit a snag this season with no front-of-shirt sponsor—the second year running without one. They’re holding out for a £60M/year deal, believing their value matches elite clubs, but missing Champions League football has deterred partners, costing them an estimated £40–60M in potential revenue for 2024/25. Their sleeve sponsor Live Nation (£6–8M) repalcing Fever and kit deal with Nike (£73.45M/year) provide some relief, but the gap is glaring! 〽️ 🔴 Liverpool saw their sponsorship revenue soar from £5.75M in 1999/2000 to £81.5M by 2013/14, and it’s estimated to reach £170M by 2025, driven by their Standard Chartered deal (£50M/year in 2024/25, extended to 2027) and kit supplier Nike. Their 20% commercial revenue increase in 2023/24 was boosted by merchandise and sleeve sponsorships like Expedia, reflecting their cultural relevance and Champions League presence.💡 🌍 Historical Insight: In the early 2000s, sponsorships were modest—£5–10M for top clubs. By 2024/25, the league’s total sponsorship revenue hit $1.68B, up 12.4% from the previous season, with the ‘big six’ (including City, United, Chelsea, and Liverpool) accounting for 73.92% of the value. The shift from beer sponsors (like Carling in the 1990s) to gambling firms (11 clubs in 2024/25) has been massive, though a 2026/27 gambling ban looms large! 📈 📉 Challenges: Missing Champions League football can hurt—Chelsea’s lack of a shirt sponsor and a £58M broadcast revenue drop in 2023/24 after missing UCL show the stakes. The upcoming gambling ban could hit clubs hard, with City, United, and Chelsea likely shifting to financial services sponsors, as seen in La Liga. What’s your take on the Premier League’s sponsorship evolution? Which club’s strategy stands out? Drop your thoughts below! 👇 #PremierLeague #Sponsorship #FootballFinance #ManCity #MUFC #CFC #LFC #SportsAI #ComputerVision #AI