The Sports Consultancy’s ability to offer commercial services to rights holders has been boosted significantly with the appointment of key figure in Glasgow 2014’s sponsorship programme.

Marc Hope has spent the last four years with Sports Marketing and Management, where he was embedded in the Organising Committee of Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games playing a pivotal role on the successful achievement of almost 50 sponsors across three tiers. 

He will lead on a significant investment into The Sports Consultancy’s rights marketing business, offering commercial services to rights holder and event clients. 

“Rights marketing is a core part of our DNA, it’s where we originated and it will build and augment our strong commercial focus as well as add depth to our commercial and strategic consulting services to government and venue clients,” said co-managing director Angus Buchanan.

“In Marc we have found someone who shares our vision and with whom we can work with to build a prominent rights marketing practice. The results he has achieved in his career to date, most recently in his role selling commercial rights for the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games, firmly establishes Marc as one of the leading practitioners in the industry.”

Before working on Glasgow 2014, Marc spent a decade with Fasttrack, which later became part of CSM, where he led the rights marketing team over a range of Olympic sports and major international events headed by UK Athletics. 

Marc landed the multi-year title sponsorship deals for the London Youth Games (LYG), for which he remains vice chairman. He also served as a non-executive board director of GB Taekwondo during their London Olympic cycle 2010-2013, which saw the sport achieve Olympic gold.

Marc will be working closely with Buchanan and his co-founder Robert Datnow in developing the rights marketing practice. 

“I have followed with great interest how Angus and Robert have developed The Sports Consultancy into one of the leading consultancies operating in the sports industry today,” said Hope. 

“It is a privilege to join their innovative team and to have the opportunity to build a new rights marketing division harnessing the company’s reputation and contacts along with its existing in-house commercial and legal experience.”

Further appointments of senior brand consultants and rights sales specialists are expected to follow.

Axcel Sights is the first company to join World Archery’s new sponsorship programme, through which it will support the Archery World Cup and World Archery Championships over 2015.

Signing a one year deal, Axcel Sights are now the Official Sight Partner of World Archery in 2015. 

World Archery’s new sponsorship programme is designed to offer organisations greater exposure around international events, as well as to provide greater opportunities to develop the sport.

The US company had assumed title sponsorship of the European stage of the 2013/14 Indoor Archery World Cup in Telford and supported national events in the Netherlands, the US, Britain, Italy and other destinations in recent years. 

Axcel Sight’s parent company has just celebrated its 20th anniversary of producing archery products after launching its first in 1995. The company owns a large portion of the US domestic archery market.

The company has grown quickly internationally over the last decade with the introduction of compound target sights and marketing directed overseas.

The recurve versions of the company’s sights have been well-received, with many top and recreational archers adopting the equipment.

Recalling his experiences of the London 2012 Olympic Games, Axcel Sights president Gregory Summers said “I visited with my family and watched the recurve men’s finals. I saw OH Jin Hyek take gold– and realised he was shooting one of our sights.

“I didn’t know the Korean Olympic Champion was an Axcel archer until I saw it there in London!”

The International Volleyball Federation (FIVB) today announced a partnership with the Beach Major Company to assist with running and promoting FIVB World Tour events including the Season Final and the Major Series. 

Swatch also today renewed its sponsorship of these events.

The Beach Major Company is a joint venture between Red Bull and Hannes Jagerhofer, founder of ACTS Group, who have been cooperating closely for 20 years. 

Soft drinks manufacturer Red Bull, with its slogan “Red Bull gives you wings” has emerged in recent years as a major player in event management and marketing. Jagerhofer has promoted and staged many volleyball events. 

“This new partnership is the next step in the FIVB’s mission to ensure that volleyball is the world’s leading family sport entertainment through engagement, innovation and universality,” said Dr Ary S. Graça, president of the FIVB. 

“Like the FIVB and volleyball, Red Bull is a dynamic, global brand and I look forward to working together to ensure that the FIVB’s beach volleyball events are a memorable spectacle for fans around the world.

“Red Bull is unrivalled in its marketing expertise. In combination with the Red Bull Media House with its outstanding network and knowledge of content production and distribution – this makes them an ideal partner for the FIVB. We are also delighted to be working closely with Hannes Jagerhofer – a renowned promoter who has set the benchmark for staging world-class volleyball events for many years. 

“Finally, today we are announcing the renewal of the relationship between beach volleyball and one of the most respected sponsors in sport – Swatch. These are all incredibly prestigious partners for the FIVB and I look forward to working closely together to ensure that volleyball continues to lead through innovation as the number one family sport entertainment in the world.” 

The joint venture has committed to “long term backing” of the FIVB and is expected to significantly expand the Major Series, which has three events in 2015: Porec, Croatia; Stavanger, Norway and Gstaad, Switzerland.

"The Swatch Beach Volleyball Major Series, together with the FIVB as the world governing body, was created to push beach volleyball to an entirely new level and position it on the world's stage of top global sports,” said Hannes Jagerhofer, CEO of the Beach Major Company.

“Only with the strong support of the International Federation, which is entirely responsible for the sport’s progress, is it possible to realise the vision of the Major Series. 

“Bringing Swatch on board as title sponsor, which is not only a strong global iconic brand but also a year-long trusted partner, facilitator and driving force, is the best possible scenario for a new era in beach volleyball history.

“To top it off, the Red Bull Media House, known for its award winning live productions, innovative content creation, action sports series and top ranked social media community will be committed to delivering new standards in beach volleyball production, distribution and entertainment.” 

2015 promises to be a high profile year for the sport, with the 2015 FIVB World Tour marking the start of the second qualification process – alongside the Continental Cup – for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games. 

Hosted on the iconic Copacabana Beach, beach volleyball is set to be the signature event of Rio 2016.

The Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games is to return to London’s former Olympic Stadium from 24 to 26 July 2015, Mo Farah announced on Monday. 

And from 2016, British Athletics will host a month of athletics in the stadium in an annual “festival” under a 50-year agreement. 

The 2015 Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games will include a two-day Diamond League meeting on Friday 24 and Saturday 25 July, with the Sainsbury’s IPC Athletics Grand Prix Final taking place on Sunday 26 July.

Double Olympic 10,000m and 5,000m Champion Mo Farah returned to the former Olympic Stadium on Monday to launch the event, which is due to take place in the iconic venue at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

“It’s fantastic that the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games is planning to return to the former Olympic Stadium this summer and I can’t wait to get back on this track to compete, at what will be a stunning celebration of athletics,” Farah said.

“The atmosphere will be amazing and I’m sure it will bring back the memories of London 2012 and the inaugural Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games in 2013.

“I hope the British public will be as excited as I am about this event, and will come out to support the athletes. I’m sure it will be the best outdoor meet this year and a great send off to the World Championships.”

Tickets are due to go on sale at the end of April and demand is expected to be high. All 65,000 tickets for the 2013 anniversary Grand Prix athletics on 26 and 27 July sold out in just 75 minutes.  

“Seeing the likes of Mo Farah return to the Olympic Stadium for the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games will be one of this year’s monumental sporting events,” said Tara Hewitt, head of sponsorship at Sainsbury’s.

On 26 July, Paralympic stars from all over the world are to compete at the stadium and the London Aquatics Centre. The events will coincide with National Paralympic Day and the Mayor of London’s Liberty Festival.

“I am excited to announce that National Paralympic Day will be returning this year with elite sports competitions in both Swimming and Athletics, as well as lots of fun, family-friendly activity on the Park,” said Tim Hollingsworth, chief executive of the British Paralympic Association.

“Over 50,000 people have taken up the chance to come to the Park to be part National Paralympic Day over the past two years and relive the wonder of the London 2012 Paralympics.”

The stadium is currently closed as work continues to transform it into the new national competition centre for British Athletics in 2016 and the permanent home of West Ham United FC. 

The stadium, designed by Populous, is currently being reconfigured from its Olympic Games mode to optimise it for hosting several events later this year including the Sainsbury's Anniversary Games and five Rugby World Cup matches.

Under an agreement with British Athletics, the stadium will host athletics competitions for one month of every year from 2016 for fifty years. 

“The Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games this summer will mark the start of new athletics legacy at the former Olympic Stadium,” said British Athletics Chief Executive, Niels de Vos. 

“For one month a year the Stadium will be the beating heart of athletics in this country and we want the nation to get excited about it and be part of it.

“As well as hosting the best international competitions in the world we need to create a two, three or four-week festival where that stadium is buzzing with athletics and fans every day.”

SportAccord Convention has announced that Repucom will once again be the Official Marketing Research Partner for this year’s World Sport & Business Summit taking place from 19-24 April 2015 at the Sochi Expocentre, Sochi, Russia.

“We’re delighted to be partnering with SportAccord Convention for another year; an event that clearly shapes the sports landscape annually.” said Paul Smith, Repucom Founder and CEO. “Equally, Repucom strives to help clients navigate the sports and entertainment sector – through research, analytics and insights – ultimately delivering solutions connected to these three pillars. Being a partner of SportAccord Convention brings us closer to the equation.”

Repucom’s connected solutions allow businesses to better understand and connect with their audiences and customers through media, sponsorship and communication.

Nis Hatt, Managing Director, SportAccord Convention commented, “As the research and consultancy provider for top brands and organisations in the sports world, Repucom is ideally positioned to take the pulse of the industry.”

Over the last year, a key development for Repucom was the work in Government, Tourism and Events, helping their partners to achieve a range of objectives including revenue increases for rights holders.

This year, Repucom are going a step further, and taking a more holistic approach in delivering solutions, supported by more than 30 years of experience and using the tools they have access to globally.

The SportAccord Convention World Sport & Business Summit is a unique opportunity for key decision-makers in sport to engage with business leaders across 25+ industry sectors. The 6-day event features a 3-day Conference, dynamic exhibition, LawAccord, City Forum, the SportAccord Convention Village and Sports Demo Zone, as well as hosting the annual general meetings of governing bodies of world sport.

For more conference information, including the Official Schedule and Conference Programme, or to register as a delegate, visit www.sportaccordconvention.com.

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT) Corporation and Asahi Breweries have both signed as gold partners of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games, within the space of two days. 

On Monday, the Tokyo-based NTT Corporation signed as Official Telecommunications Services Partner.

NTT Corporation will provide telecommunications services for hosting the Games. 

On Tuesday, Asahi Breweries was announced as the second Gold Partner in the “Beer & Wine” category. 

The world’s highest earning telecommunications company, NTT also worked on Japan’s three previous Olympic Games: Tokyo 1964, Sapporo 1972 and Nagano 1998.

"NTT has a long and distinguished history of connecting people across the length and breadth of Japan, and it is my earnest wish that we will be able to work together to further strengthen bonds between people and ensure that we deliver a successful Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2020," said Tokyo 2020 President Yoshirō Mori.

In today’s world, security is a major function of the telecommunications partner. 

“With the rapid evolution of ICT (information and communications technology), the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics require telecommunications convenience to be accompanied by safety more than ever before," NTT said in a statement.

"In addition to helping make the Games' telecommunications safe, secure, and welcoming, NTT is taking advantage of the Group's telecommunications related security technologies and its telecommunications service infrastructure inside and outside Japan, endeavouring to act as a 'value partner' in providing an unprecedented level of hospitality to the Tokyo 2020 and other relevant organisations, as well as competitors and guests from Japan and overseas."

The second Gold Partner to sign, Asahi Breweries, is already a Gold Partner of the Japanese Olympic Committee. 

“As becoming the Tokyo 2020 Gold Partner (Beer & Wine), we are greatly looking forward to support not just the Japanese national team, but also every single athlete competing in the Games, allowing them to perform beyond their limits, and convey the message of the magnificence of having hopes and dreams to the children who bear the future,” said Akiyoshi Koji, president of Asahi Breweries.

“Asahi Breweries has an excellent slogan, which translates roughly as ‘Let’s share the emotion,’” said Mori. 

“This slogan very much echoes the efforts of the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee to support athletes in their endeavours and to provide a stage where that emotion can be shared.

“During the Games, the whole of Japan will be raising their glasses and cheering on the athletes, and we are looking forward to working closely with Asahi Breweries to share the emotion of the Tokyo 2020 Games.”

The Tokyo 2020 organising committee is reported to be targeting $1.1bn of sponsorship revenue to fund staging the Games, with the top tier gold category said to be valued at $128m. At these prices, Tokyo 2020 could already be 30 per cent of the way towards its sponsorship revenue target. 

The domestic sponsors of the organising committee are distinct from the International Olympic Committee’s global TOP sponsorship programme, which also makes a major contribution to hosting the Games while supporting the Olympic movement worldwide and includes Japanese companies Bridgestone and Panasonic.

Just as a FIFA taskforce met in Zurich on Monday to review options for the timings of the 2022 World Cup, it emerged that Emirates airline would not be renewing its sponsorship contract with football’s international governing body. 

“This decision was made following an evaluation of FIFA’s contract proposal which did not meet Emirates’ expectations,” Emirates said in a statement on Monday.

A FIFA spokesperson said Emirates had informed them two years ago that Brazil 2014 would be the last World Cup it would sponsor, as the airline was changing its strategy to focus on more frequent smaller events around the world instead of a mega-event every four years. 

Qatar Airlines is said to be waiting in the wings to take over the role of official carrier for FIFA. Sony are also reported to be putting an end to their sponsorship, with Olympic TOP sponsors Samsung being mentioned as likely contenders to occupy this space.

Emirates chose to make the news public at a time when FIFA is tackling the tricky issue of how to host the World Cup in Qatar in 2022 without risking the health of players and fans, while also minimising disruption to national league fixtures. 

“We are getting closer to narrowing the dates for the FIFA World Cup to two options – January/February 2022 or November/December 2022 – but FIFA has also been asked to consider May 2022,” said FIFA secretary general Jérôme Valcke. 

Hosting the World Cup in January/February would almost certainly result in the event clashing with the 2022 Winter Olympic Games, for which Almaty and Beijing are currently candidate cities. 

The May option was put forward by the European Club Association, who have proposed that the tournament could take place from April 28 to May 29 without disrupting domestic fixtures.

However, FIFA’s chief medical officer Professor Jiří Dvořák highlighted medical concerns relating to player safety and fan safety if the FIFA World Cup were to be held between May and September. Valcke also pointed out that the month-long period of Ramadan would begin on 2 April in 2022, which would impact on preparations for the tournament.

Hassan Al Thawadi, CEO of the local organising committee said the preferred scenario was for the World Cup to be held in the winter, while affirming that it remained fully committed to delivering what was promised in its bid and organising the best possible event whatever is decided.

The taskforce is due to hold its next meeting in early 2015 after further consultation. 

“The objective of today’s meeting was to receive feedback from all parties and to work on narrowing the options,” said Sheikh Salman Bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa.

The State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) has joined Proctor and Gamble, Tissot, BP and Nar Mobile as the fifth official partner of the Baku 2015 European Games. 

The deal will see Baku 2015 European Games branding on every SOCAR forecourt and outlet across the country to raise awareness of the event.

“The majority of tickets will go to local people; that’s a big challenge,” said Charlie Wijeratna, commercial director at Baku 2015 in an exclusive interview that will be published in the autumn issue of HOST CITY magazine. 

“Shifting tickets to people for sports they’ve never historically paid to watch before, you need great local marketing partners.”

SOCAR, which employs more than 60,000 people, will also help to promote the Games through a marketing campaign in four other European countries, including Switzerland, Georgia, Romania and Ukraine.

Azad Rahimov, Azerbaijan’s Minister of Youth and Sports and CEO of Baku 2015, said “The European Games is an opportunity to promote Azerbaijan to the rest of the world and to have the backing of such a highly valued international company is of vital importance.”

SOCAR have a long standing association with major sporting bodies and events, including the Association of Football Federations of Azerbaijan. It is also sponsoring the 2016 UEFA European Football Championship in France.

Mr Rovnag Abdullayev, President of SOCAR, said “Sponsorships across sport are a very significant point for us, and SOCAR is honoured to be associated with such an exciting moment in the history of the country.”

The European Games takes place in Baku from 12 – 28 June 2015, featuring 20 sports and 6,000 athletes.

 “As we continue to count down the days until the beginning of the European Games, it gives us great confidence to know that many major Azerbaijani businesses are backing our efforts to create an innovative event that will unite Europe through sport,” said Simon Clegg, Chief Operating Officer of Baku 2015.

“We are very pleased with how the sponsorship programme has gone,” Wijeratna told HOST CITY.

The world’s largest multi-sports rights holder has partnered with the world’s largest tyre and rubber company. 

In an agreement through to 2024, The Bridgestone Corporation, headquartered in Tokyo, has joined The Olympic Partner (TOP) programme – the IOC’s small group of sponsors with exclusive marketing rights.

This is the first sponsorship agreement is the first to be signed under the watch of the IOC’s new marketing commission chairman, Tsunekazu Takeda.

“I am delighted that a leading Japanese company, Bridgestone, will become the 11th Worldwide TOP Partner and the second TOP Partner to commit through to 2024,” said, the IOC’s marketing commission chairman, who is also president of the Japanese Olympic Committee and vice president of the Tokyo 2020 Organising Committee.

“As the first Partner the IOC has signed under my Chairmanship of the Marketing Commission I am also personally very happy that we were able to make this global announcement in Tokyo,” said Takeda.

Alongside 10 other Worldwide TOP Partners including McDonalds, Coca Cola and Visa, Bridgestone will not only partner with the IOC but also all 204 National Olympic Committees and their Olympic teams.

The tyre manufacturer will also partner with the organisers of future Olympic Games, including the Rio 2016, PyeongChang 2018 and Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, as well as the 2022 and 2024 Olympic Games – the host cities of which have yet to be elected. 

Bridgestone will supply tyres and related services to support the transport operations at Games time, including the vehicles for the athletes, media and officials. 

“The long-term, global support the TOP Programme provides is essential to the entire Olympic Movement, as well as to the staging and operations of each Games,” said Takeda.

As well as tyres, the product categories covered by the agreement include seismic isolation bearings and non-motorised bicycles. The company also manufactures industrial rubber and chemical products and sporting goods.

Bridgestone CEO and Chairman Masaaki Tsuya said, “As a global corporation, Bridgestone is excited to partner with the entire Olympic Movement, a group of organisations that not only brings together the world’s athletes at the greatest athletic festival, but also blends this celebration of sport with a spirit of service to community, social responsibility, a respect for diversity and a commitment to the fundamental principles of Olympism.”

As a Worldwide TOP Partner, Bridgestone will partner with the IOC and all 204 National Olympic Committees and their Olympic teams.

“The TOP programme is a truly global sponsorship programme, as it benefits all future Games organisers and all the National Olympic Committees and their athletes, ensuring that athletes from all over the world, and not just the largest countries, are able to compete at the Games,” said IOC President Thomas Bach.

“Indeed, the IOC redistributes over 90 per cent of its revenues to the wider sporting movement. Bridgestone is a global leader in its field, and we are delighted to welcome the company to the TOP programme and are excited about the long-term commitment they have shown to the Olympic Movement.”

[Source: ESA] Antony Douglass (Specsavers), James Goode (IMG), Heli Kemppainen (Neste) and Martin Prendergast (Martin Prendergast Communications) were elected by their fellow ESA Members, while existing Board Director Stuart Wareman (Accor) was re-elected. 

The election of Heli Kemppainen as a second representative from Finland on the ESA Board increases the female contingent to six, including ESA General Manager Karen Fan. Martin Prendergast and James Goode strengthen arts & culture representation on the Board and Antony Douglass provides legal expertise following the retirement of Bob Mitchell (Harbottle & Lewis). 

Besides the elections, ESA also presented information to members from all existing workstreams and the new Sustainability Working Group, as well as information about the not-for-profit association’s performance. 

ESA Chairman Andy Westlake said: “I’m extremely proud of how our community continues to adapt to challenging international conditions to keep the sponsorship industry buoyant, and yesterday’s AGM gave us the chance to reflect on this success. 

“I’m delighted to welcome Anthony, James, Heli and Martin to the Board of Directors and it’s wonderful to see Stuart continue his tenure. We look forward to working with all five of them and it’s super that we have such a representative Board as we seek to deliver on our mission to inspire, unite and grow a welcoming and diverse sponsorship industry. 

“As we continue to bring new members into our international community we will remain focused on giving members the best possible value and a rewarding experience in all aspects of their engagement with ESA. 

“The only regrettable aspect of the ESA 2023 AGM was saying a formal goodbye to those Board Directors who have stepped down, and I thank William Fenton and Bob Mitchell for their terrific contribution.” 

Visit the Leadership page of the ESA website to see the new Board in full.