List of biggest sports sponsors?

FearM9 · May 13, 2003

Hi..

Is there a list out there that shows say the top 10 companies in terms of how much $$$ they throw out there to sponsor teams, leagues, sporting events, etc.? I would guess Budweiser and Coke are some of the biggies.

Also a list that would show sponsorship by company type (auto manufacturer, beverages, food, financial services, etc.) would be helpful as well.

kevbrunton · May 13, 2003

RJR would also have to be pretty big with their Nascar Winston Cup sponsorship and Marlboro Penske teams in IRL. They're not as big as they used to be because they used to also sponsor NHRA but had to drop that due to the tobacco settlement.

Some of the big PGA Sponsors like Buick may also be well up the list.

Budweiser has sponsorship in virtually all the racing sports from Earnhardt in Winston Cup to the Bernstein's in NHRA to Miss Budweiser in boats.

Coke has a lot of association sponsorships with Winston Cup teams and sponsors the Coke 600 in Charlotte.

Where you'd find all this stuff pulled together and quantified, I have no idea. If someone has done it, they've done a LOT of work. I know what the sponsorship deals in Winston Cup are HIGHLY guarded secrets (just ask Brooke Gordon), so any numbers would have to be estimates.

Jeremy Goodwin · May 13, 2003

Lists of sponsorships by company show up with some regularity in the Sports Business Journal. This week's issue actually had roundups of Automotive and Credit Card companies.

The value of sponsorships is not generally publicly available.

I'd call up your local library and head over with a pocketful of quarters.

Information is probably also available in some sort of periodical search database, if your library has access to full text (colleges generally do, and larger city libraries).

Real Ray · May 13, 2003

This should give you an idea about Nike:

Knight is pushing hardest in soccer, the world's most popular sport. He spent $155 million of a $1 billion marketing budget on endorsements by soccer players and teams in the fiscal year ended in May — more than he spent signing up basketball stars.

The 2002 world champion Brazil national team wears Nike shorts and jerseys, thanks to a 10-year, $160 million deal Knight made in 1997. In November 2000, Manchester United, Britain's biggest soccer club, agreed to wear Nike shirts and shorts for 13 years after Knight paid $438 million in his most expensive endorsement deal ever
Click to expand...

If I remember right, the WC sponsor deal for companies like Coke, Budweiser, etc., are around $45 million a pop. McDonald's Olympic deal is around $60 million.

Pepsi last year began a 5 year $50 million dollar deal with MLB. They also became the official drink of the NFL for a 5 year $200 million deal. Coors is in with the NFL for 5 @ $300 million.

According to one list I saw, Anheuser-Busch, Philip Morris General Motors, Coca-Cola Co. and PepsiCo are the top 5 US corporate sponsors.

This is a bit "wonky" but it's an interesting read. It's a report called, "Conteracting Tobacco MotorSports Sponsorship As A Promotional Tool: Is The Tobacco Settlement Enough" http://www.ftc.gov/os/comments/tobaccocomments2/motorsports.pdf

ABSTRACT
Objectives. This study quantifies television advertising exposure achieved by tobacco
companies through sponsorship of motor sports events and evaluates the likely impact of the
Master Settlement Agreement on this advertising.
Methods. Data from Sponsors Report, which quantifies the exposure that sponsors of selected
televised sporting events receive during broadcasts of those events, were compiled for all motor
sports events covered by the service for the period 1997-1999.

Results. During the period 1997-1999, tobacco companies achieved 169 hours of television
advertising exposure and $410.5 million of advertising value for their products by sponsoring
motor sports events. If cigarette companies comply with the Master Settlement Agreement and
maintain their advertising at 1999 levels, they will still be able to achieve more than 25 hours of
television exposure and an equivalent television advertising value of $99.1 million per year.

Conclusions. Despite a federal ban on tobacco advertising on television, tobacco companies
achieve the equivalent of more than $150 million in television advertising per year through their
sponsorship of motor sports events. The Master Settlement Agreement will likely do little to
address this problem.
Click to expand...