Croke Park provided the perfect setting yesterday morning as ESA Ireland brought together the sponsorship community for its 2026 Annual Event, a morning rich in award-winning campaigns, practical insight and a strong sense of where the industry is heading next.
Hosted by the GAA in the Cusack Stand, the event gathered Irish and international brands, agencies, rights holders and sponsorship professionals for a programme that placed sport, entertainment, culture and community at the centre of the conversation.
Peter McKenna drew comparison between the GAA and the FIFA World Cup in respect of genuine redistribution of funds to sport, and took a metaphorical bow for the summer of events from Man United and the Weeknd to Katie Taylor being staged at the iconic venue.
Sophie Morris then set the tone with a whistle-stop tour of the latest trends in sponsorship, with AI holding on to the top spot for a second year as one of the defining themes shaping how brands, agencies and rights holders are thinking about the future. Her overview provided a useful frame for a morning that moved quickly from strategy and technology to creativity, bravery and delivery.
There were international case studies, Irish market perspectives and plenty of evidence that the most effective sponsorships are no longer built around visibility alone. The strongest message from the morning was that successful partnerships are built on shared objectives, long-term relationships and the ability to deliver value for all parties involved.
Among the standout contributions was the Sid Lee team, who blew the room away with their telling of the Tommy Hilfiger partnership with F1 The Movie. It was a sharp reminder of how the best partnerships can sit at the meeting point of sport, fashion, entertainment and storytelling, creating cultural relevance well beyond the traditional boundaries of sponsorship.
The Marketing Institute Ireland AIM Award winners panel, hosted by Jill Downey, brought together three very different but equally compelling examples of partnership in action.
Downey steered a conversation that reinforced the power of true partnership, not as a transaction but as a relationship that deepens over time and becomes more valuable when both sides are willing to listen, adapt and evolve.
Tom Noonan spoke about Cairn Homes’ partnership with Community Games and his own journey to finally becoming an MII AIM Award winner. The campaign stood out as a strong example of how long-term commitment, community engagement and continuous evolution can create meaningful impact for a brand, a rights holder and the communities they both serve.
It was a reminder that some of the most effective sponsorships in Ireland are those closest to the ground, where the investment is not only seen in branding or media value but in participation, pride and local connection.
Stephanie Bell of Mercedes-Benz offered a different perspective, speaking about the value of bravery and calculated risk in sponsorship. Her reflections on backing the then unknown reality TV show The Traitors brought the room into the reality of decision-making inside brands, where conviction often has to come before proof.
She also made a strong case for the role of marketing in driving commercial growth and business success, a point that resonated strongly with the wider Marketing Institute Ireland view of marketing as a strategic driver rather than a support function.
Caroline Hutchinson of Vodafone brought the conversation back to one of the longest-running and most recognisable sponsorship platforms in Irish sport, speaking about how the company’s decade-long partnership with the IRFU has evolved far beyond traditional sponsorship.
Her insight into how Vodafone has used the partnership to support its B2B ambitions was particularly interesting. The sponsorship has become a platform not only for brand visibility around Irish rugby but also for helping smaller business customers across the country, showing how a major sporting partnership can be leveraged across multiple parts of a business.
Tanya Townsend of Three, Lorraine McCormack of Vhi and Jake O’Brien of Guinness gave us genuine insight into the creation of memorable moments in their sponsorship programmes, under the expert guidance of Verve’s Michael Pring.
A special shout-out also to Quiz Wizards, who entertained the room and reminded us all of Wayne Rooney’s awful World Cup scoring record. A great way to bring interactivity, and no little fast fingered competition to the room.
The best partnerships begin with clarity of purpose. They grow through trust. They succeed when both sides understand what success looks like. And they endure when they are given room to evolve.
We may be only the 25th biggest sponsorship market in Europe but we do an incredible job with what we have.
Congratulations to Darragh Persse of The Brand Fans and the ESA Ireland team for pulling the whole thing together, and to the GAA for hosting the European sponsorship community in a venue that continues to be a powerful symbol of sport’s role in Irish life.
At a time of global uncertainty on so many fronts, the morning at Croke Park made a persuasive case that the right partnership, activated with imagination and built on shared objectives, remains one of the most powerful tools available to brands, rights holders and communities alike.
It was a pleasure to be there.
ESA Ireland and Sport for Business have a shared vision to highlight the best work in sponsorship and to facilitate conversations that matter around making that work continue.
If you would like to be part of the Sport for Business community and see your organisation in our content, on our stages, and in the conversation happening every day around the commercial world of Irish Sport, email us today and let’s see what is possible.
Image Credit: Gymnastics Ireland
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