ECA News
Revenues from sponsorship marks an integral part of every football club's annual budget; running a football club without commercial partners is no longer imaginable. However, sponsorship is much more than just a reliable, recurrent revenue stream: working hand in hand with credible sponsors allows for a partnership benefiting both the club's and the sponsor's brand image.
Further to a request from the ECA Marketing & Communication Working Group, the European Club Association decided to organize the first ECA Workshop on Sponsorship and Brand Building today at the Camp Nou in Barcelona.
The aim of the Workshop was to share and exchange knowledge with regards to sponsorship and to better understand the changing dynamics in this field. It was also an opportunity for all participants to learn first-hand from established sponsors their point of view on how the relationship between club and sponsor has evolved over the years and what exactly sponsors seek for in such a partnership.
The 55 participants from 40 ECA Member clubs were welcomed by FC Barcelona President Sandro Rosell, following which they were addressed by selected experts from the industry allowing for different point of views on the matter.
The Workshop began with a presentation by Laurent Colette, Marketing Director at FC Barcelona, on FC Barcelona's sponsoring strategy. Participants were then encouraged to exchange their thoughts and this lead to a very interesting Q&A session. The morning session continued with a 1-on-1 talk between Sergi Ricart, Football Brand Director at Nike Iberia, and Laurent Colette, followed by a presentation from Pepe Soler-Roig, Head of Sponsorship & Events at Audi Spain, who provided clubs with an insight on the sponsor's point of view. The afternoon began with a intervention by Ed Wooler, Head of Consulting at REPUCOM, the leading research and consultancy company specialized in developing solutions for the planning, evaluation and optimisation of sponsorship engagements in the sports industry. Finally, Jose-Luis Rosa, Head of Marketing Partnerships at Euroleague Basketball, provided clubs with a different sports perspective on maximising sponsorship efficiency in the sports market.
Each presentation was followed by a Q&A Session, during which the members present were able to share their ideas and experiences related to the different topics.
After the succesful staging of the New Media Workshop back in 2011, it was the second event of this kind initiated by the ECA Marketing & Communication Working Group chaired by ECA Vice-Chairman Sandro Rosell. With the start of the new season, ECA will continue organising workshops on different topics of interest.