Welcome to the Sport for Business Expert Forum where each week we carry the perspective of members within the Sport for Business community on issues which are of timely relevance within the area we cover that lies between sport business and society.
Today we look ahead to what promises to be a magical summer of sport in 2016 and pose three questions on how a irish vein of opportunity might be approached by sponsors.
This week we are pleased to welcome Bernard O’Byrne the CEO of Basketball Ireland; Joanne O’Sullivan who last night celebrated with her colleagues as PSG Sponsorship won the Sponsorship Consultancy of the Year at the Irish Sponsorship Awards; and Jill Downey who heads up the Livewire Agency, part of the Core Media Group.
Which of the Big three summer events of the Euro’s, the Olympics and the All Ireland Championships will be the biggest attraction of the Summer of 2016?
Bernard O’Byrne, Basketball Ireland – The Euros will be the big draw undoubtedly, since we qualified for the first time in 1988. The Irish Soccer team draws the whole nation together in a special way. Those of us old enough would love the magic of the Charlton era to be replicated, the new generation want to make their own story.
Despite our small size, on the football pitch is where we regularly do the country proud. The Olympics will grab attention for one event here and there or one great Irish performance but it tends to be sporadic and unless you’re a Dub, a Kerryman or a Cat you are likely to have only a passing interest in the GAA Championships.
Nevertheless, we all dip in and out and it promises to be a long enthralling summer of sport.
Jill Downey – Well for the sports fan, the great thing is you don’t really have to choose, you can enjoy sport all summer long. Now that Ireland have qualified for Euro 2016, it should really kick off the summer of sport in style.
The GAA will remain the mainstay of the Irish sporting summer. But I think it will lose a little of its power during the Euros. All three sporting tournaments have certain advantages over the other. The Euro’s has national pride behind a team, the All Ireland has longevity, captivating the nation every weekend from May to September, and the Olympics creates and celebrates national sporting heroes.
2016 also brings exciting new aspects to the Olympics with Seven’s rugby and Golf. One thing is for sure when Team Ireland’s stars such as Katie Taylor and Rory McIlroy are in action, the nation will be watching.
Looking back through the viewership figures it is clear that proximity to the event has an impact on viewership & interest levels. This is primarily related to the time difference for broadcasting but it can also have an impact on the more instantaneous news sources online and twitter.
We saw a huge surge in interest in RWC 2015, versus 2011, in part due to the ever increasing popularity of rugby but also due to the very favourable broadcast times. The Euro’s in France will only be 1 hour ahead, which is perfect for evening viewing. Also that tournament will feature so many familiar faces to Irish soccer fans, that interest levels are bound to be strong.
In contrast Rio 2016 will be 4 hours behind Ireland, meaning some key moments could happen in the early morning or during working hours. This is bound to have an effect on TV viewership at least, though not necessarily dampening our interest levels.
This year fans who travelled to games during RWC 2015 had a much higher awareness and affiliation with brands who were sponsoring the tournament. With Euro 2016 being held so close I’d expect a large number of Irish fans travelling, and therefore a great opportunity for brands.
My bet is that Euro 2016 will win the TV ratings battle just beating the GAA All Ireland Finals but The Olympics will win the digital battle with lots of great stories and content around personal and Team Ireland achievements.
A look at the figures in 2012 (Courtesy of RTE)
Peak Euro Game – Ireland v Croatia
Reach: 1,235,700 individuals with 68.5% share of all viewing at that time
Peak GAA Game – All Ireland Football Final Dublin v Mayo
Reach 974,500 individuals with 69.3% share of all viewing at that time
Peak Olympics moment – Katie Taylor’s Gold medal winning fight
Reach 753,800 individuals with 62.8% share of all viewing at that time
Joanne O’Sullivan, PSG Sponsorship – After the excitement that followed Ireland qualifying, I have to say the Euros. There is something about a national team event that really galvanises Irish supporters and the wider public and takes the excitement levels up a notch.
Irish soccer fans, sponsors and media haven’t had much to celebrate in recent years. They will take full advantage of this opportunity and create a lot of noise. However the Euros will be success dependent too. If we get off to a bad start like in 2012, the hype will fade quickly, but we all hope this doesn’t happen.
The Olympics is special, and we get several cracks at the title here. Katie Taylor is a national hero, she was named Ireland’s most admired sports star by 34% of the respondents in the 2014 PSG Sponsorship Sports Sentiment Index and of course it will be great to see Rory McIlroy in action too.
The All Ireland Championships will always draw huge interest and sponsors will be back with brilliant activation campaigns, but the Euro’s has the potential to be something really special.
The Euro’s will get the nation behind a team, the Olympics behind individual heroes. Which is the stronger option for a brand?
Bernard O’Byrne – The length of exposure with the Euros present the best option but unless you are one of a small number of key associated brands involved the benefits can be devalued due to saturation at lower levels.
Jill Downey – It depends on the brand and its objectives. While there is undoubtedly significant overlap in the fan base, each tournament has different values and appeal. The activations around each will feel very different.
The GAA is massive every summer and will not lose out in support from brands because of the Olympics and Euros.
Their brands are in it for the long haul and GAA really delivers for them.
That said, the wow factor of the Olympics and the Euro’s cannot be underestimated and will be appealing to brands and consumers. The desire for content will be huge from fans, especially around the Olympics and Paralympics.
The difficulty for all brands connected to both Euro’s and Olympics teams in Ireland, is the difficulty in associating with the event where global partners have the rights, and the rights are highly protected. This is why great on the ground activation, whether you are a local or global partner is so key.
Joanne O’Sullivan – It depends on the brand and what they are hoping to achieve from the sponsorship.
In general, a team sponsorship is a safer option. When a brand sponsors an individual athlete they are hoping that one person will deliver the performance of a lifetime and avoid all injuries, scandal and any other potential PR disasters.
With a team sponsorship, the risk is spread among a number of players and from a purely logistical point of view, there is a pool of people to draw upon for appearances, PR and promotional activity.
In saying that, when an individual sponsorship goes a brand’s way, it can be a match made in heaven – Jessica Ennis and Adidas, Under Amour and Jordan Speith are all good examples.
A very clever brand will take on three or four Olympians, thus spreading the risk and effectively getting a team sponsorship.
Do you believe that other sports will suffer next year as a result of the Euro 2016 qualification and a strong team gathering for Rio?
Bernard O’Byrne – No, I don’t. Most Irish people have a genuine love of good sport and will tune in or attend as much as possible. It’s some of the pundits that people will be jettisoning.
Jill Downey – Other sports won’t necessarily suffer as a result of the Euro 2016 qualification. Viewing figures for the recent Ireland v Germany game were higher on average than the Ireland v Bosnia game, despite the Rugby World Cup tournament being ongoing during the Germany game.
The Olympics & the Euros should complement each other, and they don’t overlap. Irish pride will be at an all-time high next summer, with plenty of hope in both show piece events.
As we are a sports mad nation and different sports have different windows, I don’t necessarily see other sports suffering, though events like the Dublin Horse Show may suffer (following a great year this year) as all the great international horses and riders will be in Rio.
The appetite is there from the sports fan, and brands are looking for unique and ‘ownable’ properties which they can leverage against key brand objectives. The marquee events are out of the reach of some brands.
It should also be a great year for the national Cricket team playing in the T20 in India and the Paralympics has a strong appeal. Both properties brands should really consider strongly.
Joanne O’Sullivan – Potentially. There will be less money to go around and the big focus in years like this is on major international events. Bear in mind too, the Ryder Cup is on.
Other sports are going to have to work harder to get the attention of sponsors, media and fans in 2016, but it is not an impossible task.
However, the sponsorship market is buoyant at the moment and we have seen a raft of new deals and renewals in recent months.
If you take a longer term view, the Olympics has the potential to create a halo effect for the sports participating in it. A good performance form the men’s hockey team, the Irish boxers and others will result in raising the profile of the sports and future sponsorship revenue.
Also, brands with no official link to Rio or France may look to activate elsewhere so opportunities will arise for other sports.
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