What Value Global Events? Ask Spain…

July 16, 2010 by Joe Favorito · 1 Comment 

As the world moves on and experts look back on what value the World Cup brought to the African continent, perhaps they should look no further than the now reigning champion, Spain. Steadily over the last few years, the Spanish athletic programs across the board have transformed the Iberian Peninsula into a world power, whether that be in sports like golf and tennis or soccer and basketball.   Why?  Probably a number of factors but two of the most important are facilities and exposure, both of which are the fruits of Spain’s ability to host and then effectively leverage the World Cup and the Olympics.  Those two events ten years apart, World Cup in ‘82 and Olympics in ‘92, provided a platform to the world and to young athletes  on the benefits not just of top level competition, but also of they ways sport can be a social unifier.

Candy is Dandy, But Liquor Is Now Quicker (For The Bottom Line)…

March 24, 2010 by Joe Favorito · 4 Comments 

In the boom years of sports spending, teams and broadcast officials held many big spending categories away from the “wholesome” image of sport.  While millions came in from beer, and prior to the pressure from government in the United States and elsewhere, big tobacco grabbed every position available, other industries with solid cash reserves and the ability to come up with unique marketing platforms were left off the air and out of the many arenas.  Condoms, hard liquor, even feminine hygene products were taboo for the sports world.  One well-documented battle even had the WTA Tour walking away from a multi-year deal with Tampax as a title sponsor because of the stigma and bad publicity it may bring, while liquor brands found ways to activate and engage fans offsite.

L.A. Doesn’t Dodge The Chance To Build It’s Global Brand

March 14, 2010 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

The Los Angeles Dodgers, despite the messy divorce and internal politics going on with the McCourt breakup, remain one of the world’s premier sports brands.  The front office, led by Dennis Mannion on the business side, continues to cultivate new avenues to grow the brand of the team, not just its players, into a community that is tremendously diverse and is extremely fickle in it’s dpending of dicretionary income.  In addition, the Dodgers have a World Champion to compete with in hoops (the Lakers), and a highly competitive and success neighbor in the American League (the Angels), with one of the most forward thinking owners in baseball (Arthuro Moreno).  So what is a team to do?  Go East.  Below is our recent Huffington Post piece on the Dodgers trip to Taiwan, and its reasons, especially in a croweded marketplace. ..

Sports and Politics…Obama Throws Support While Athletes Support Him…

June 5, 2008 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

We have periodically looked into the opportunities Senator Barack Obama has seized upon by associating himself with a sports culture, largely the very fickle male demo which does not get into the political mix.  Whether it was playing hoops with SI’s Scott Price or on HBO Real Sports or giviving his Final Four predictions, the Senator has done a more than admirable job, even more than sportsman Senator John McCain, of trying to come across as a guy who guys could like and vote for.  In the last few days, we have seen the politics as sports issue swing both ways, both positive.  First, with the great news that Chicago stayed in the race for the 2016 Olympics, there was a great Chicago Tribune piece on how Obama’s White House run (being a Senator from Illinois) could help the 2016 bid process and become a potential positive factor in his campaign and potential presidency.   Then, the Philly Inquirer had some humerous and some thoughtful insights from African American athletes on Obama’s potential nomination.  Again, the issue of a run for the White House, let alone any political issues, are very rare to enter the sports section in a positive way.  Here are two varied examples of a positive interplay between the two areas, which gets more people thinking about their given right to vote and could make for more spirited debate and interest in the system amongst the sports fan.  No downside to either issue at all. 

Majoring In The Minors…Again…Altoona Throws a Curve With Season Long “Leip” Year Celebration

March 4, 2008 by Joe Favorito · Leave a Comment 

PR Move of the Day:  We haven’t done one of these in a while (and are looking forward to a summer of good ideas), but we turn to the Business of Minor League Baseball blog and give props to the Altoona Curve for announcing their season long “Leip” Year promotions, timed of course to last Friday’s February 29 Leap Day.   The promotions, ranging from honoring “leaplings” those born on that date, to a special “29″ section and “29″ giveaways are all in honor of the Curve Manager Tim Leiper and will run all season long…a great  way to play out the extra day and build momentum and sponsor interest with a very simple idea.