The Sports Branding World Continues To Shrink…

November 18, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

With every passing week the global transparency of sports events continues to grow. Whether it is high school hoops stars looking to build their brand and their game going to Israel, Emirates Airways using the Breeder’s Cup in Los Angeles as a prime global marketing tool or more Chinese brands signing endorsements to promote brands never seen before in the United States, the sports and entertainment world continues to contract in distance and expand in potential opportunities.

UFC’s Recent Moves Shows More Business Savvy Than Some Give Credit For…

August 2, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

Many people can criticize the sport of Mixed Martial Arts, but one thing that cannot be criticized is the continuing rise in business savvy of the UFC. Friday was a great example of how far the “NFL of MMA” has come. In their usual fashion, the UFC announced well, probably way too far in advance, that they had a “big announcement and press conference set for this past Friday. The hype machine had the much anticipated Fedor Emalianenko vs. Brock Lesnar fight finally signed, a heavyweight battle which would lift MMA more into the mainstream with big fight buildup worthy of two crossover athletes, one American, one Russian. However the day came and went, and the press conference went off with its own news, news that was not the hyped up and teased announcement the sport had hoped for. Instead, White announced the return of former UFC star to the organization, and talked very candidly and at length about the problems as to why the Fedor-Lesnar fight did not happen. White talked at length about the issue’s with Fedor’s management team and the large purse and concessions being demanded, and sent a strong message not just to those in the MMA business, but those watching the MMA business, especially the UFC business, who are interested but not yet involved. The message was that the UFC has the business savvy to know what a good deal for all involved, especially financially for the UFC, is, and that with their current success the cost/benefit of going over that at this time does not make good business sense. It is a departure from the free wheeling spending in exchange for buzz that has slowed MMA’s potential outside the UFC, and even more interesting is it seems to avoid the pratfalls of overspending, alphabet soup and mismanagement that has severely hurt boxing in recent years. It also was a great move by the UFC to take the stage and turn the messaging squarely against the Fedor Management team, especially for the casual observer. Does it mean that the UFC will not get its dream matchup at some point? No. It does mean that the UFC knows its business, its negotiation tactics that work and its audience and by being the only player in professional MMA they have sent a clear message that they can dictate the correct business terms for success, which if you are a brand or a media partner looking to invest, maybe you are now closer to working with them. Well positioned, well thought out, and well timed.

Tennis Continues To Have An Empty Cup…While WTT Scores Locally.

July 14, 2009 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

Coming off of an epic Wimbledon for the second year in a row, it would seem that tennis, with all its global promotional arms, the power of the USTA and the other three Grand Slams, and some strong personalities would be poised to make a strong followup showing leading into the US Open Series. After all, this past week had the best team-based tennis event in the world…one that showed that the sport could be played not just as individuals or even as doubles partners, but in an event that fans could understand and experience and that each match would count for toward a season long finale, just like other sports. Yes that team format did deliver with some fun matches, a great digital play, a good experience on site for all and even some amazing press coverage. The only problem for the sport is the team format that got the exposure last week was Billie Jean King and Ilana Kloss long-running World Team Tennis entry, as opposed to the often-maligned and much forgotten Davis Cup brand. Here’s a look at both in the week that was. Once again Davis Cup, arguably one of the best on site experiences in sport, got lost again in the scheduling shuffle. The week fell after Wimbledon and at the same time as the women’s US Open, the NASCAR Chicagoland Sprint Cup Series, the run-up to the baseball All-Star game, UFC 100 and even the World Series of Poker. Add in that top American Andy Roddick couldn’t play because of injury and the limitations on travel budgets for most mainstream media, and the Davis Cup as a brand was lost in the shuffle on almost all points. Making things worse is the continued confusing schedule and the lack of any major brand activation in the early rounds and one of the best events in all of sport virtually disappeared. Now juxtapose that with WTT, which grabbed some great coverage in USA Today and the Washington Post (their Washington franchise was home last weekend), tied in charity events with some name players, and found enough squeaky wheels (Murphy Jensen) to effectively use social media to also drive some interest. Given a brands’ ROI, those aligned with WTT easily got more short term and lower cost exposure than those associated with the higher profile Davis Cup event for the week. Can Davis Cup ever go through a brand restoration? Tough to do unless the oft-talked about format change happens. If not, one of the legendary team sports could continue to fall behind a slightly slicker and more efficient cousin run by a legend who know how to make the game fun for new generations.

Taking The Mountain To Mohammad: Ravens Host Business Summitt In New York…

November 16, 2008 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

Most pro sports teams will take advantage of the road trip to host fans and business partners from their region with the team as a reward for customer or brand loyalty, and to give those involved with the team the much-wanted “insiders” perspective.  That access is becoming more and more valuable as brands look at their sponsorships.  However this week, as Terry Lefton reported in the Sports Business Daily, the Baltimore Ravens made a very smart play to go the experience one better…they hosted a Friday media summitt for New York media buyers and potential partners as part of their advance trip for their game with the Giants.  The move is even better for a smaller market team like Baltimore, especially with the Redskins media machine right in their backyard.  It gave them a well-produced presence in the biggest media market to tell their story and give those who may not know enough about the brand the chance to learn from those on the inside about the team partnership opportunties and personalities that make up the Ravens.  Now instead of buyers looking just nationally or to the low hanging fruit of the Giants or the jets, the Ravens may present a very smart opportunity that the buyers may not have know about before.  Very aggressive, well thought out and tactical branding plan by the team, taking great advantage of their one shot in New York during the fall.