Single-club partnerships dominate as 88% of
brands opt for exclusive deals
STAMFORD, Conn., Aug. 14,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- SponsorUnited, the leading
global sports and entertainment intelligence platform—tracking over
386,000 brands, 2.1 million deals, and 17.6 million data points
across sports, entertainment, media, and talent, today released its
European Football Marketing Partnerships 2023–24 report.
Key findings include:
Significant growth in brand and sponsorship deals: The
number of brand sponsors in European football grew by 22% this
season, more than doubling last season's increase. In comparison,
the five major professional sports leagues in the US averaged a
10.5% increase in sponsorship deals since 2022. This impressive
growth in European football was driven by a combination of new
deals and improved retention of existing deals, resulting in a
record-breaking total of almost 6,000 deals. This represents a 20%
increase in deals from the previous season, along with an 11%
decrease in churn rate of deals.
Surge in exclusive single-club partnerships: Nearly 90%
of brands (88%) have signed single-club deals over multi-club
partnerships, a trend evident this season with over 3,800 different
brands committing to just one football club each. This is a 23%
increase from last season. This trend is also led by the
aforementioned categories, which together account for one third of
all single-club deals. Additionally, this year Serie A and LALIGA
clubs have surpassed Premier League clubs in sponsorship deals with
nearly 1,500 and 1,450 deals each— emphasizing the strategic focus
on deepened market penetration and fan engagement.
"The dramatic rise in European football partnerships this season
underscores an evolution in the market dynamics," said Bob Lynch, founder and CEO of SponsorUnited.
"Non-traditional sectors like business services and construction
are increasingly engaging with the sport, reflecting a maturation
in how brands and leagues collaborate. These sectors often start
with targeted, single-team investments, which can scale
significantly as they realize the value of their engagements,
setting the stage for long-term impacts on club and athlete
partnerships."
Most-endorsed athletes shift following major departures:
With the departures of Neymar Jr., Lionel
Messi, and Cristiano Ronaldo
from the "Big 5" leagues, the endorsement landscape for European
football athletes has dramatically shifted. Goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa now leads with 19 endorsements;
however, he is also departing the Big 5 after this season.
Vinicius Junior ("Vini Jr.") and
Harry Kane follow with 17 and 16
endorsements respectively, with Vini Jr. adding the most deals (5).
Son Heung-min, Robert Lewandowski, Erling Haaland, and Virgil van Dijk each have 14 endorsements. They
are followed by Jack Grealish with
13 and Thomas Müller with 12.
Top growing teams showcase remarkable follower growth:
The top five growing teams have significantly outpaced follower
growth across all teams, with Real Madrid CF leading with an
addition of 54M followers. This surge
in popularity is closely tied to the presence of high-profile
players such as Vini Jr., who is among the most-endorsed athletes
this season. FC Bayern Munich, Liverpool, and Manchester City, which have also shown
substantial increases, adding 31M,
30M, and 26M followers respectively, are home to other
top-endorsed athletes like Harry
Kane, Virgil van Dijk, and
Erling Haaland. This trend
underscores the strong correlation between a team's social media
growth and the endorsement appeal of its star players.
Coca-Cola leads sponsorship deals amid diverse brand
categories: With 39 deals, Coca-Cola still leads the list of
European football sponsors, followed by EA Sports (FC) (33 deals),
eToro (31 deals), Sorare (25 deals), and Skechers (23 deals). When
it comes to brand categories, construction remains a powerhouse
with nearly 800 sponsorships—a 27% increase from last season and a
54% increase from the season before. They are followed by auto with
425 (+38%) and tech with 415 (+23%) deals.
"The increasing influence of US ownership in European football
is reshaping business practices and commercial strategies across
the leagues," added Lynch. "This transatlantic investment is
fostering deeper engagements with US brands, who are now more
confident in entering and expanding within the European market
through innovative avenues."
View the full report here.
About SponsorUnited
Launched in 2018, SponsorUnited is
the leading global sports and entertainment intelligence platform,
delivering actionable data and insights to build stronger marketing
partnerships. We provide unrivaled knowledge across the sponsorship
and media landscape so our clients can make impactful decisions
that drive business.
With over 386,000 brands, 2.1 million deals, and 17.6 million
data points across sports, entertainment, media, and talent, our
SaaS database enables brands, rights holders, and agencies to
partner more effectively. By delivering real-time trends, on-demand
research, and the most comprehensive data available, we connect the
entire sponsorship ecosystem and are rewriting the partnership
playbook.
SponsorUnited was ranked on the Inc. 5000—the most prestigious
list of the fastest-growing private companies in America—in both
2022, 2023, and 2024. Visit https://sponsorunited.com/ to learn
more and discover exclusive data and insights to make intelligent
partnership decisions at speed and scale.
CONTACT: Lisa Brown,
lbrown@sponsorunited.com
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SOURCE SponsorUnited