Building partnerships with purpose – the future of brands in football
By Paul Nicholson
August 22 – In a profoundly changed sports landscape, WPP, the world's largest marketing and advertising services company, continues to grow its sports practice, offering sports marketing and consulting activities under an integrated banner . WPP Sports Practice CEO Dominic Grainger spoke exclusively to Insideworldfootball.
The power of the WPP network and the resources it can draw on are simply awe-inspiring.
WPP, with a turnover of over £14.4 billion and over 100,000 employees, is a compelling force working with the world's biggest advertisers, both nationally and internationally.
Each major sporting event, league and club is likely to have a point of contact somewhere within the WPP network. If they don't, they will likely covet WPP's customer base and now that network is being leveraged into a more integrated global sports proposition for advertisers, event organizers, and rights holders and owners. p>
“A lot of people may not realize how involved we are in sports work at WPP. Our sporting experience is extensive as we work with many of the biggest brands in the world, as well as rights holders and event organizers,” said Grainger.
“It starts with advice and strategy, as we often advise our client brands on their broader marketing strategy. Our sports marketing capabilities span from sponsorship strategy and activation to fan engagement, hospitality, bidding and event hosting. Due to the size and scope of WPP agencies, we cover a wide range of services. Our sports capabilities are provided by integrated media and public relations agencies, both locally and globally, as well as a number of specialist sports marketing agencies, each with their own unique proposition and perspective. »
“WPP is bolstering its agency offerings with large-scale data and technology capabilities and partnerships with technology platforms and other partners.
“It allows us to offer our customers first-hand information and cultural insights, but with the support, infrastructure, technology and tools of a global company,” said Grainger.
Women's football has grown rapidly thanks to huge investments from national federations and regional confederations. FIFA is late to the party with investment parity but now wants to lead the way with its World Cup. Are opportunities being missed to accelerate the entry of brands and advertisers into the women's game?
“Women's football represents a huge opportunity not only for FIFA and other footballing entities, but also for brands that want to continue investing in women's sport. At this year's World Cup, we saw phenomenal growth in sponsorship, attendance, broadcast rights and more.
“Although this is a positive change, we are obviously still far from the investment that men's football receives. Even though women's football attracts even fewer people, growth is high and there is potential for brands to partner with a part of the sport that will become increasingly important in our lives in the coming years. »
Grainger says women's football can create an opportunity for brands to be part of this change and make a difference.
“This is an opportunity to take a long-term view, help make a real difference and accelerate the growth of the sport. I think we will see a lot more brands getting involved in the years to come, so those that do so sooner will have an advantage as women's football will undoubtedly see increasing commercial success in the short and long term.< /p >
"Interestingly, women's football fans differ in terms of demographics, allowing brands to reach new audiences, as well as in behavior, with higher brand recall among sponsors and a greater propensity to purchase sponsors' products than male football fans.< /p>
Brands are changing the way they interact with sport
Grainger (pictured) points out that today's sporting landscape has changed significantly from that of five or ten years ago. At the same time, the needs of WPP's clients have changed as digital invades everyday life and the habits and values of younger generations have changed.
By Paul Nicholson
August 22 – In a profoundly changed sports landscape, WPP, the world's largest marketing and advertising services company, continues to grow its sports practice, offering sports marketing and consulting activities under an integrated banner . WPP Sports Practice CEO Dominic Grainger spoke exclusively to Insideworldfootball.
The power of the WPP network and the resources it can draw on are simply awe-inspiring.
WPP, with a turnover of over £14.4 billion and over 100,000 employees, is a compelling force working with the world's biggest advertisers, both nationally and internationally.
Each major sporting event, league and club is likely to have a point of contact somewhere within the WPP network. If they don't, they will likely covet WPP's customer base and now that network is being leveraged into a more integrated global sports proposition for advertisers, event organizers, and rights holders and owners. p>
“A lot of people may not realize how involved we are in sports work at WPP. Our sporting experience is extensive as we work with many of the biggest brands in the world, as well as rights holders and event organizers,” said Grainger.
“It starts with advice and strategy, as we often advise our client brands on their broader marketing strategy. Our sports marketing capabilities span from sponsorship strategy and activation to fan engagement, hospitality, bidding and event hosting. Due to the size and scope of WPP agencies, we cover a wide range of services. Our sports capabilities are provided by integrated media and public relations agencies, both locally and globally, as well as a number of specialist sports marketing agencies, each with their own unique proposition and perspective. »
“WPP is bolstering its agency offerings with large-scale data and technology capabilities and partnerships with technology platforms and other partners.
“It allows us to offer our customers first-hand information and cultural insights, but with the support, infrastructure, technology and tools of a global company,” said Grainger.
Women's football has grown rapidly thanks to huge investments from national federations and regional confederations. FIFA is late to the party with investment parity but now wants to lead the way with its World Cup. Are opportunities being missed to accelerate the entry of brands and advertisers into the women's game?
“Women's football represents a huge opportunity not only for FIFA and other footballing entities, but also for brands that want to continue investing in women's sport. At this year's World Cup, we saw phenomenal growth in sponsorship, attendance, broadcast rights and more.
“Although this is a positive change, we are obviously still far from the investment that men's football receives. Even though women's football attracts even fewer people, growth is high and there is potential for brands to partner with a part of the sport that will become increasingly important in our lives in the coming years. »
Grainger says women's football can create an opportunity for brands to be part of this change and make a difference.
“This is an opportunity to take a long-term view, help make a real difference and accelerate the growth of the sport. I think we will see a lot more brands getting involved in the years to come, so those that do so sooner will have an advantage as women's football will undoubtedly see increasing commercial success in the short and long term.< /p >
"Interestingly, women's football fans differ in terms of demographics, allowing brands to reach new audiences, as well as in behavior, with higher brand recall among sponsors and a greater propensity to purchase sponsors' products than male football fans.< /p>
Brands are changing the way they interact with sport
Grainger (pictured) points out that today's sporting landscape has changed significantly from that of five or ten years ago. At the same time, the needs of WPP's clients have changed as digital invades everyday life and the habits and values of younger generations have changed.
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