» Motorsport

The fans don’t follow F1… they follow the Brands and Atheletes

admin — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:00:53 +0000

Formula One television audiences in Spain and Italy fell drastically this year, reflecting disappointing performances by Spanish driver Fernando Alonso and Italian car manufacturer Ferrari, which suffered its worst season in 16 years.

According to the latest sports viewing survey from TV Sports Markets and Eurodata TV Worldwide, the big falls in Spain and Italy were partly counterbalanced by a significant lift in UK audiences. Viewership in the other two top European markets, France and Germany, remained broadly stable.

Audiences in Spain dropped 29 per cent on 2008, with Alonso’s worst-ever season coinciding with coverage shifting from what was the country’s leading commercial broadcaster, Telecinco, to smaller rival La Sexta. La Sexta’s live coverage averaged just under three million viewers per race and drew an audience share of 31 per cent.

Audiences for Italian public-service broadcaster Rai fell 21 per cent against 2008, when Ferrari won the championship, averaging 5.6 million viewers per race. Further analysis shows, perhaps surprisingly, that almost 40 per cent of the audience was female. Just under 50 per cent of the audience was aged over 55.

In the UK, Jenson Button’s championship season provided a perfect start for public-service broadcaster the BBC, which took over the rights at the start of this year after commercial rival ITV opted to concentrate its limited resources on Champions League football. Audiences were 16 per cent on ITV’s audiences last year and the highest since the BBC last had the rights in 1996.

In France, audiences for commercial broadcaster TF1 rose less than one per cent to 3.1 million. Some 33 per cent of the audience were women, slightly lower than the gender split for Champions League football, where women accounted for 35 per cent of TF1’s average audience last season. Forty-nine per cent of the Formula One audience in France is over 50 years of age, the same proportion for the Champions League. In Germany, RTL averaged 5.2 million viewers per race, with the penultimate race of the season in Brazil attracting the season-high of 7.2 million viewers and a 28-per-cent audience share.

Toyota finally quits F1

admin — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:59:07 +0000

Toyota has confirmed that it is pulling out of Formula 1 - The world’s largest car manufacturer will concentrate on its core business. The team failed to win any of the 139 races it entered after making its F1 debut in 2002 but was fifth in the 2009 constructors’ championship… this despite having one of the biggest budgets in the premier class. Toyota’s withdrawal leaves the sport with no Japanese team after Honda left F1 at the start of the 2009 season. They become the third manufacturer to quit the sport in the last 11 months after BMW announced it was leaving in July. Honda were of course replaced by BrawnGP, who went on to win this year’s drivers’ championship with Jenson Button and the constructors’ championship… again congratulations to all the team in Brackley, UK – an amazing ‘fairy tale’ happy ending.

Maybe this is ‘back to the future’ for F1 – more independent teams and less ‘manufacturers’ – with Lotus (where Trulli may be headed??), Manor, USGP and Campos racing to make the 2010 grid… who will be next to join the fray? Maybe F1 is beginning a new era.

MotoGP Champ Valentino Rossi gears up for motocross

admin — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:33:41 +0000

Valentino Rossi will put his leg over a Motocross bike in a little less than two weeks time. The nine time World Road Racing Champion will line up alongside many of his MotoGP friends to raise money for sick kids.

Rossi is organising the event to raise money for a children’s hospital which treats leukemia sufferers in the Italian city of Pésaro. On Sunday 15th November Rossi will be one of the riders taking part in a special motocross event to give a financial boost to the hospital, with Andrea Dovizioso, Loris Capirossi, Marco Simoncelli, Mattia Pasini and former 500cc World Champion Kevin Schwantz also all booked in to attend.

The organisers are hoping for a big turn-out from fans to support the event, which will take place in Cavallara, a 40km drive from Pésaro.

2009 Dirt Bike Show at Stoneleigh Park

admin — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:25:34 +0000

If you’re into motocross then there’s only one place to be, that’s the 10th anniversary Dirt Bike Show at Stoneleigh Park from November 5-8th

Korea and Canada on FIA’s F1 2010 calendar

admin — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 08:32:38 +0000

Formula One racing’s governing body, the FIA, has released the calendar for the 2010 world championship. The addition of the Korean Grand Prix, and a return to Canada (subject to race contract), will make for a 19-round season – two more than in 2009. The Bahrain Grand Prix will kick off proceedings on March 14, followed by the Australian race two weeks later. The Malaysian and Chinese races will take place in April, with the Sepang event getting underway an hour earlier than this year, with a revised start time of 1600 hours local time.

In May, the championship heads to Europe for rounds in Spain, Monaco and Turkey, before the teams make their way to Canada for the first time since 2008, subject to the completion of contractual negotiations with Formula One Management. If these are not completed, then the Turkish Grand Prix will be moved to June 6.

Following the completion of the European season, the teams will fly out to Asia in late September for back-to-back races in Singapore and Japan, followed by the inaugural Korean Grand Prix. Abu Dhabi will be the penultimate round, with the championship finale returning to its familiar home of Brazil in mid November.

2010 FIA Formula One World Championship calendar
14 March – Bahrain
28 March – Australia
4 April – Malaysia
18 April – China
9 May – Spain
23 May – Monaco
30 May – Turkey
13 June – Canada*
27 June – Europe (Valencia)
11 July – Great Britain
25 July – Germany
1 August – Hungary
29 August – Belgium
12 September – Italy
26 September – Singapore
3 October – Japan
17 October – Korea
31 October – Abu Dhabi
14 November – Brazil

*Subject to the completion of contract negotiations with Formula One Management. If these are not completed then the Turkish Grand Prix will be moved to 6 June.

Note: The race in Australia will start at 1700 local time, in Malaysia at 1600 local time, in Singapore at 2000 local time, and in Abu Dhabi at 1700 local time.

www.formulaone.com

F1 – what goes around comes around!

admin — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 09:33:52 +0000

Team Lotus will be back in Formula One next season – and the Norfolk man draughted in is Mike Gascoyne, ex Toyota, Jordan and Tyrrell designer. Malaysian entrepreneur and new team principal Tony Fernandes is involved in the project – something which brought with it backing from the Malaysian government and a consortium of investors from the country.”It is different from what Lotus was, obviously, as the company is now owned by Proton and this is very much a Malaysian backed initiative. But that backing is exciting and great for Formula One, and to tie that in with the heritage of Lotus has a very nice synergy.” said Gascoyne.

Lotus F1 will initially be set up in the RTN centre at Hingham, a 50,000 square foot facility most recently used by Bentley for its Le Mans programme. Works will eventually move to Lotus’ new operations base at Malaysia’s Sepang circuit. Sponsorship announcements are anticipated and driver line-up is due to be revealed next month.

Lotus F1, based in Norfolk joins Manor Motorsport, based in Buckinghamshire, as two of the four new teams in Formula One in 2010 boosting the motorsport industry in the UK. The other teams are from the USA, Team US F1, and Campos from Spain – more good news is the return of Cosworth as an engine supplier. BMW Sauber also has a new owner having been sold to Swiss-based Qadbak Investments.

It seems the auto manufacturers are pulling out gradually as teams – leaving more independant teams to fill the F1 grid… isn’t this how it used to be?? What goes around comes around!

Motorsport sponsorship declines in 09… tell us something we didn’t know!

admin — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 09:53:58 +0000

One For The Record Books: Motorsports Sponsorship To Decline In ‘09… but its how the spend is spent that will make all the difference. Sponsorship is entering a new age… just because the fans have octane in their veins doesn’t necessarily mean it’s relevant any longer.

North American-based companies will spend an estimated $3.3 billion to sponsor motorsports teams, tracks and sanctioning bodies this year, a nearly six percent decline from the $3.5 billion spent in ‘08, according to the IEG Sponsorship Report.

The projected decline is a first since IEG SR began tracking motorsports spending in 1985. As automakers and other sponsors look for ways to reduce spending, the big-ticket prices associated with major racing sponsorships have become harder to justify, and many companies have backed away from previous levels of commitment.

The projected spending amount reflects both reductions in spending and elimination of programs from previous sponsors such as Domino’s Pizza, Kodak and others, but also some new sponsor dollars that have served to prevent the decline from being even more severe.

Looking at some of the positive activity: Search engine Ask.com this year will launch a multi-faceted NASCAR program that includes a tie to the sanctioning body and title of a Hall of Fame Racing Sprint Cup Series entry driven by Bobby Labonte. In addition, Mars North America signed a multiyear extension with NASCAR spanning four categories: chocolate, chocolate bar, cheese-filled snack and pet food.
www.sponsorship.com

SportsPro ranks the world’s 200 most valuable sports properties

admin — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 11:57:57 +0000

SportsPro magazine has published the world’s first ranking of sports properties in its July issue. Unsurprisingly, the National Football League (NFL) is ranked as the world’s most valuable sports property, with a value of US$4.5 billion. It is followed at the top of the table by three other American properties – Major League Baseball (MLB) (US$3.9 billion), the NBA (US$3.35 billion) and Nascar (US$1.9 billion).
The newest property in the list is the Indian Premier League (IPL), which is valued at US$1.6 billion – a staggering achievement for a two-year-old property.
The highest ranked European team property is the Ferrari Formula One team (7th) at a value of US$1.55 billion, followed by Manchester United Football Club (8th) at US$1.495 billion. The most valuable American sports club is the Dallas Cowboys (10th), the NFL team, valued at US$1.278 billion.
Tiger Woods (11th) is the highest rated athlete property with a value of US$1.25 billion, followed by Jack Nicklaus (16th) at US$1 billion. Golfers dominate the athletes’ table because of the high earnings from designing golf courses; Tiger Woods is expected to earn over a billion dollars from designing courses in the next decade and will almost certainly eclipse his on-course earnings. David and Victoria’s Beckham Brand Ltd property (88th) is valued at US$375 million.
Many single annual events appear, led by the Wimbledon tennis championships (22nd) valued at US$900 million.
Unsurprisingly, the most valuable competition is the Fifa World Cup (5th) valued at US$1.7 billion, ahead of the Summer Olympic Games (15th) at US$1.04 billion. The Uefa Champions League (13th) is valued at US$1.1 billion, eclipsing the Summer Olympics due to its annual status.
Ends
OVERALL TABLE (200) (Top Ten tables below)
Source: SportsPro Magazine

1 National Football League; 32 NFL franchises Football - US$4.5 billion
2 Major League Baseball; 32 MLB franchises Baseball – US$3.936 billion
3 National Basketball Association; 30 NBA franchises Basketball – US$2.344 billion
4 Nascar France family; Motorsport – US$1.9 billion
5 Fifa World Cup; Fifa Soccer – US$1.7 billion
6 Indian Premier League BCCI (India) Cricket US$1.6 billion
7 Scuderia Ferrari; Fiat Motorsport – US$1.55 billion
8 Manchester United FC; Malcolm Glazer Soccer – US$1.495 billion
9 Formula One; CVC/Royal Bank of Scotland Motorsport – US$1.45 billion
10 Dallas Cowboys Jerry Jones Football US$1.278 billion
11 ETW Corp/Tiger Woods Design Tiger Woods Golf US$1.25 billion
12 New York Yankees George Steinbrenner Baseball US$1.19 billion
13 Uefa Champions League Uefa Soccer US$1.1 billion
14 Real Madrid Club Members Soccer US$1.073 billion
15 Olympic Games (Summer) International Olympic Committee Multi-Sports US$1.024 billion
16 Nicklaus Design and Golf Equipmt Jack Nicklaus Golf US$1 billion
17 Washington Redskins Daniel Snyder Football US$999 million
18 PGA Tour PGA of America Golf US$970 million
19 New York Giants John Mara/Steven Tisch Football US$932 million
20 New York Jets Robert Wood Johnson IV Football US$927 million
21 Arsenal FC Stan Kroenke Soccer US$910 million
22 The Wimbledon Championships All England Lawn Tennis Club Tennis US$900 million
23 US Tennis Open United States Tennis Association Tennis US$880 million
24 New England Patriots Robert Kraft Football US$861 million
25 World Wrestling Entertainment McMahon Family Wrestling US$837 million
26 Miami Dolphins Wayne Huizenga/Stephen Ross Football US$828 million
27 Liverpool FC George Gillett/Tom Hicks Soccer US$801 million
28 Arnold Palmer Design Arnold Palmer Enterprises Golf US$800 million
29 Great White Shark Enterprises Greg Norman Golf US$800 million
30 Uefa European Championship Uefa Soccer US$800 million
31 FC Barcelona Club Members Soccer US$793 million
32 AC Milan Silvio Berlusconi Soccer US$774 million
33 National Hockey League 30 NHL franchises Ice Hockey US$760 million
34 Rugby World Cup Rugby World Cup Ltd/IRB Rugby Union US$750 million
35 The Masters Augusta National Golf Club Golf US$750 million
36 Michael Jordan Michael Jordan/Nike Basketball US$725 million
37 Houston Texans Robert McNair Football US$725 million
38 Philadelphia Eagles Jeffrey Lurie Football US$723 million
39 FC Bayern Munich Club members Soccer US$721 million
40 ICC World Cup International Cricket Council Cricket US$700 million
41 ATP World Tour Assoc. of Tennis Professionals Tennis US$700 million
42 Indianapolis Colts James Irsay Football US$699 million
43 Chicago Bears McCaskey Family Football US$692 million
44 Baltimore Ravens Stephen Bisciotti Football US$690 million
45 Denver Broncos Patrick Bowlen Football US$689 million
46 Tampa Bay Buccanneers Malcolm Glazer Football US$685 million
47 Carolina Panthers Jerry Richardson Football US$676 million
48 Cleveland Browns Randy Lerner Football US$673 million
49 New York Mets Fred Wilpon Baseball US$665 million
50 Green Bay Packers Shareholders Football US$664 million
51 Kansas City Chiefs Hunt Family Football US$660 million
52 Pittsburgh Steelers Rooney Family Football US$659 million
53 Seattle Seahawks Paul Allen Football US$657 million
54 Boston Red Sox John Henry/Thomas Werner Baseball US$651 million
55 Chelsea FC Roman Abramovich Soccer US$634 million
56 Cincinnati Bengals Michael Brown Football US$612 million
57 New Orleans Saints Thomas Benson Football US$608 million
58 St Louis Rams Chip Rosenbloom/Stan Kroenke Football US$603 million
59 Detroit Lions William Clay Ford Football US$597 million
60 Arizona Cardinals William Bidwell Football US$594 million
61 Team McLaren-Mercedes; Mercedes/Mumtalakat/Ron Dennis/Mansour Ojjeh Motorsport – US$580 million
62 San Diego Chargers Alexander Spanos Football US$577 million
63 Buffalo Bills Ralph Wilson Jr. Football US$574 million
64 Tennessee Titans Kenneth Adams Jr. Football US$569 million
65 Atlanta Falcons Arthur Blank Football US$567 million
66 San Francisco 49ers Denise DeBartolo York Football US$561 million
67 Oakland Raiders Allen Davis Football US$559 million
68 Minnesota Vikings Wilf Family Football US$545 million
69 Monaco Grand Prix; Automobile Club de Monaco Motorsport – US$520 million
70 Olympic Games (Winter) International Olympic Committee Multi-Sports US$504 million
71 America’s Cup Société Nautique de Genève Sailing US$500 million
72 Golden Boy Promotions Oscar de la Hoya Boxing US$500 million
73 Ryder Cup PGA of America/PGA European Tour Golf US$500 million
74 Jacksonville Jaguars Wayne Weaver Football US$497 million
75 Internazionale Massimo Moratti Soccer US$481 million
76 Juventus Agnelli Family Soccer US$476 million
77 Los Angeles Dodgers Frank McCourt Baseball US$469 million
78 Chicago Cubs Tom Ricketts Baseball US$455 million
79 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games Federation Multi-Sports US$450 million
80 New York Knicks Cablevision Systems Basketball US$405 million
81 Australian Open Tennis Australia Tennis US$400 million
82 LeBron James LeBron James Basketball US$400 million
83 Six Nations Six Nations Rugby Ltd. Rugby Union US$400 million
84 Chicago Bulls Jerry Reinsdorf Basketball US$399 million
85 Phoenix Suns Robert Sarver Basketball US$381 million
86 WTA Tour Women’s Tennis Association Tennis US$380 million
87 Los Angeles Lakers Jerry Buss/Philip Anschutz Basketball US$379 million
88 Beckham Brand Ltd. David Beckham/Victoria Beckham Soccer US$375 million
89 Detroit Pistons Karen Davidson Basketball US$374 million
90 Boston Celtics Wycliffe Grousbeck Basketball US$353 million
91 Major League Soccer MLS Soccer US$350 million
92 Tour de France Amaury Sport Organisation Cycling US$350 million
93 Hendrick Motorsports; Rick Hendrick Motorsport – US$335 million
94 AS Roma Sensi Family Soccer US$331 million
95 FC Schalke 04 Club members Soccer US$331 million
96 MotoGP; Dorna Sports Motorsport – US$330 million
97 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim Arturo Moreno Baseball US$330 million
98 Toronto Maple Leafs Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Ice Hockey US$325 million
99 Philadelphia Phillies William Giles Baseball US$322 million
100 St Louis Cardinals William DeWitt Jr. Baseball US$315 million
101 Roush Fenway Racing; Jack Roush/John Henry Motorsport – US$313 million
102 Asian Games Olympic Council of Asia Multi-Sports US$310 million
103 Indianapolis 500; Tony George Motorsport – US$310 million
104 Cleveland Cavaliers Daniel Gilbert Basketball US$310 million
105 San Francisco Giants William Neukom/Susan Burns Baseball US$305 million
106 Houston Rockets Leslie Alexander Basketball US$304 million
107 Dallas Mavericks Mark Cuban Basketball US$304 million
108 Copa America Conmebol Soccer US$300 million
109 French Open French Tennis Federation Tennis US$300 million
110 PGA European Tour PGA European Tour Golf US$300 million
111 Ultimate Fighting Championship Zuffa LLC Martial Arts US$300 million
112 Chicago White Sox Jerry Reinsdorf Baseball US$292 million
113 New York Rangers Cablevision Systems Ice Hockey US$291 million
114 Atlanta Braves Liberty Media Baseball US$289 million
115 Houston Astros Robert Drayton McLane Jr. Baseball US$288 million
116 Seattle Mariners Nintendo Baseball US$277 million
117 San Antonio Spurs Peter Holt Basketball US$269 million
118 Washington Nationals Theodore Lerner Baseball US$264 million
119 Texas Rangers Tom Hicks Baseball US$262 million
120 Singapore Grand Prix; Ong Beng Seng/Singapore Government Motorsport – US$261 million
121 Baltimore Orioles Peter Angelos Baseball US$260 million
122 Cleveland Indians Lawrence Dolan Baseball US$260 million
123 San Diego Padres John Moores Baseball US$260 million
124 Toronto Raptors Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Basketball US$260 million
125 Panathinaikos Giannis Vardinagiannis Soccer US$254 million
126 Arizona Diamondbacks Ken Kendrick Baseball US$253 million
127 The Open Championship Royal & Ancient Golf US$252 million
128 Tottenham Hotspur FC Daniel Levy Soccer US$250 million
129 Colorado Rockies Charles Monfort/Richard Monfort Baseball US$241 million
130 BMW-Sauber F1 Team; BMW Group Motorsport – US$240 million
131 Detroit Tigers Michael Illitch Baseball US$240 million
132 Philadelphia 76ers Comcast Spectacor Basketball US$234 million
133 Utah Jazz Miller Family Basketball US$233 million
134 Minnesota Twins James Pohland Baseball US$232 million
135 Toronto Blue Jays Rogers Communications Baseball US$229 million
136 Washington Wizards Abe Pollin Basketball US$229 million
137 Sacramento Kings Maloof Family Basketball US$227 million
138 Orlando Magic Richard DeVos Basketball US$226 million
139 Milwaukee Brewers Mark Attanasio Baseball US$225 million
140 Cincinnati Reds Robert Castellini Baseball US$222 million
141 Renault F1 Team; Renault Motorsport – US$220 million
142 Sachin Tendulkar Sachin Tendulkar Cricket US$220 million
143 Golden State Warriors Christopher Cohan Basketball US$217 million
144 Montreal Canadiens George Gillett Ice Hockey US$217 million
145 Denver Nuggets Stan Kroenke Basketball US$213 million
146 Tampa Bay Rays Stuart Sternberg Baseball US$208 million
147 Oakland Athletics Lewis Wolff/John Fisher Baseball US$207 million
148 Kansas City Royals David Glass Baseball US$204 million
149 Manchester City FC Abu Dhabi United Investment Group Soccer US$202 million
150 Australian Football League AFL AFL US$200 million
151 English FA Cup English Football Association Soccer US$200 million
152 FC Porto FCPorto SAD Soccer US$200 million
153 Atlanta Hawks Atlanta Spirit Basketball US$199 million
154 Portland Trail Blazers Paul Allen Basketball US$199 million
155 Miami Heat Micky Arison Basketball US$196 million
156 Detroit Red Wings Michael Illitch Ice Hockey US$196 million
157 Indiana Pacers Herbert Simon/Melvin Simon Basketball US$196 million
158 Los Angeles Clippers Donald Sterling Basketball US$195 million
159 Aston Villa FC Randy Lerner Soccer US$195 million
160 Minnesota Timberwolves Glen Taylor Basketball US$195 million
161 Oklahoma City Thunder Clay Bennett Basketball US$195 million
162 Memphis Grizzlies Michael Heisley Basketball US$191 million
163 New Jersey Nets Bruce Ratner Basketball US$191 million
164 Werder Bremen Werder Bremen and Co. Ltd. Soccer US$190 million
165 Fenerbahce Fenerbahce S.K. Soccer US$190 million
166 Toyota Racing; Toyota Motor Corp. Motorsport – US$190 million
167 Volvo Ocean Race; Volvo Event Management UK Sailing – US$190 million
168 Pittsburgh Pirates Robert Nutting Baseball US$188 million
169 Charlotte Bobcats Robert Johnson Basketball US$184 million
170 New Orleans Hornets George Shinn/Gary Chouest Basketball US$184 million
171 Milwaukee Bucks Herbert Kohl Basketball US$180 million
172 Florida Marlins Jeffrey Loria Baseball US$179 million
173 Philadelphia Flyers Comcast Spectacor Ice Hockey US$178 million
174 Dallas Stars Tom Hicks Ice Hockey US$177 million
175 Celtic FC Dermot Desmond Soccer US$172 million
176 VfB Stuttgart Club members Soccer US$171 million
177 Boston Bruins Jeremy Jacobs Ice Hockey US$170 million
178 Hamburger FC Club members Soccer US$165 million
179 Galatasaray Galatasaray SK Soccer US$160 million
180 Vancouver Canucks Francesco Aquilini Ice Hockey US$153 million
181 Borussia Dortmund Borussia Dortmund GmbH Motorsport US$150 million
182 Colorado Avalanche Stan Kroenke Ice Hockey US$150 million
183 Olympique Lyonnais Jean-Michel Aulas Soccer US$150 million
184 New Jersey Devils Jeffrey Vanderbeek Ice Hockey US$144 million
185 Olympique de Marseille Robert Louis-Dreyfus Soccer US$141 million
186 Earnhardt Ganassi Racing; Teresa Earnhardt Motorsport – US$140 million
187 Minnesota Wild Craig Leipold/Philip Falcone Ice Hockey US$140 million
188 Los Angeles Kings Philip Anschutz Ice Hockey US$136 million
189 Everton FC Bill Kenwright Soccer US$133 million
190 Ottawa Senators Eugene Melnyk Ice Hockey US$133 million
191 Chicago Blackhawks Wirtz Family Ice Hockey US$132 million
192 Anaheim Ducks Henry Samueli/Susan Samueli Ice Hockey US$131 million
193 Calgary Flames Calgary Flames LP Ice Hockey US$131 million
194 Tampa Bay Lightning Oren Koules/Len Barrie Ice Hockey US$130 million
195 Glasgow Rangers FC Sir David Murray Soccer US$126million
196 Pittsburgh Penguins Mario Lemieux/Ronald Burkle Ice Hockey US$126 million
197 Newcastle United FC Mike Ashley Soccer US$120 million
198 Kobe Bryant Kobe Bryant Basketball US$120 million
199 San Jose Sharks Kevin Compton/Greg Jamison Ice Hockey US$116 million
200 Penske Racing; Roger Penske Motorsport – US$115 million

Source: SportsPro Magazine
TOP TEN LEAGUE PROPERTIES
Rank Property Owner/Majority Shareholder Sport Value
1 (1) National Football League 32 NFL franchises Football US$4.5 billion
2 (2) Major League Baseball 30 MLB franchises Baseball US$3.936 billion
3 (3) National Basketball Assoc. 30 NBA franchises Basketball US$2.344 billion
4 (4) Nascar France family Motorsport US$1.9 billion
5 (6) Indian Premier League BCCI (India) Cricket US$1.6 billion
6 (9) Formula One CVC/RBS/Ecclestone Motorsport US$1.45 billion
7 (13) Uefa Champions League Uefa Soccer US$1.1 billion
8 (18) PGA Tour PGA of America Golf US$970 million
9 (33) National Hockey League 30 NHL franchises Ice Hockey US$760 million
10 (41) ATP World Tour Association of Tennis Prof Tennis US$700 million
Source: SportsPro Magazine
TOP TEN TEAM PROPERTIES
Rank Property Owner/Major Shareholder Sport Value
1 (7) Scuderia Ferrari Fiat Motorsport US$1.55 billion
2 (8) Manchester United FC Malcolm Glazer Soccer US$1.495 billion
3 (10) Dallas Cowboys Jerry Jones Football US$1.278 billion
4 (12) New York Yankees George Steinbrenner Baseball US$1.19 billion
5 (14) Real Madrid Club Members Soccer US$1.073 billion
6 (17) Washington Redskins Daniel Snyder Football US$999 million
7 (19) New York Giants John Mara/Steven Tisch Football US$932 million
8 (20) New York Jets Robert Wood Johnson IV Football US$927 million
9 (21) Arsenal FC Stan Kroenke Soccer US$910 million
10 (24) New England Patriots Robert Kraft Football US$861 million
Source: SportsPro Magazine
TOP TEN INDIVIDUAL ATHLETE PROPERTIES
Rank Property Owner/Major Shareholder Sport Value
1 (11) ETW Corp/Tiger Woods Design Tiger Woods Golf US$1.25 billion
2 (16) Nicklaus Design Jack Nicklaus Golf US$1 billion
3 (28) Arnold Palmer Design Arnold Palmer Golf US$800 million
4 (29) Great White Shark Enterprises Greg Norman Golf US$800 million
5 (36) Michael Jordan Michael Jordan/Nike Basketball US$725 million
6 (72) Golden Boy Promotions Oscar De La Hoya Boxing US$500 million
7 (82) LeBron James LeBron James Basketball US$400 million
8 (88) Beckham Brand Ltd David and Victoria Beckham Soccer US$375 million
9 (142) Sachin Tendulkar Sachin Tendulkar Cricket US$220 million
10 (198) Kobe Bryant Kobe Bryant Basketball US$120 million
Source: SportsPro Magazine

TOP TEN ANNUAL TOURNAMENT PROPERTIES
Rank Property Owner/Major Shareholder Sport Value
1 (22) The Wimbledon Championships All England Lawn Tennis Club Tennis US$900 million
2 (23) US Tennis Open United States Tennis Association Tennis US$880 million
3 (35) The Masters Augusta National Golf Club Golf US$750 million
4 (69) Monaco Grand Prix Automobile Club de Monaco Motorsport US$520 million
5 (81) Australian Open Tennis Australia Tennis US$400 million
6 (83) Six Nations Six Nations Rugby Ltd. Rugby Union US$400 million
7 (92) Tour de France Amaury Sport Organisation Cycling US$350 million
8 (109) French Open French Tennis Federation Tennis US$300 million
9 (120) Singapore Grand Prix Ong Beng Seng/Singapore Government Motorsport US$261 million
10 (127) The Open Championship Royal & Ancient Golf US$252 million
Source: SportsPro Magazine

Danica Patrick & Tissot launch on Twitter

admin — Wed, 20 May 2009 08:42:22 +0000

Danica Patrick is the first person to launch on Twitter in conjunction with, and backed by a sponsor, Tissot watches. Danica Patrick on Twitter: http://twitter.com/danicapatrick

What makes this different, and consequently an exciting time for all parties involved, is that Danica is one of the first motorsport athletes to launch on Twitter in conjunction with a sponsor. Tissot see this and social media as a whole as an opportunity for ongoing sponsorship in a less-invasive way than traditional advertising. They’re trying to connect with consumers through social media and one of their company’s ‘faces’.

Both Danica and Tissot are well aware that they are carving new territory in terms of sponsorships on Twitter and are moving ahead cautiously and figuring it out as they go. Both parties want to execute this new venture within the cultural norms of social media.

Danica officially launched on Sunday, May 17th, but prior to her first tweet she already had 2700 followers, which illustrated the demand for her to communicate and connect with her fans in this relatively new medium. She’s already validated that her account is real by posting a Twitpic in uniform from New York.

Smaller sponsors finding ‘new economy’ in today’s NASCAR

admin — Wed, 06 May 2009 17:05:28 +0000

Green and yellow die cast stock cars wrapped in the Sun-Drop logo line his shelves reminding him of a period when small, locally-owned companies could afford to sponsor a car in NASCAR’s premier series and the partnerships were forged through friendship.

“Dale used to buy around 10 cases of Sun-Drop a week and he became friends with John King and his family, a local bottler in Concord, N.C. That’s how it all started,” said Falls, president of Choice USA Beverage, Inc. who today bottles the citrus soda for the Southern regions of South Carolina, North Carolina and Tennessee.

Dale Earnhardt and Sun-Drop had a five-year endorsement agreement that was terminated when Coca-Cola came into the sport.What began as a small agreement between Earnhardt and the local Sun-Drop bottler in Concord grew into a five-year personal endorsement agreement and associate sponsorship of Earnhardt’s No. 3 car making Sun-Drop one of the first major beverage sponsors in the sport. Although the company’s tenure that began in the early 1990s would not survive.

Since then, NASCAR’s sponsorship game has evolved tremendously and today’s economic landscape and recession is forcing smaller companies looking for viable fits to find new and innovative strategies.

“We couldn’t compete with Coke when they arrived,” Falls explained. “Dale [Earnhardt] got pressure to join the Coca-Cola racing family and he was never allowed to renew that five-year contract. We were left out of the sport because we couldn’t afford to compete with Coke and Pepsi’s resources and the money they were willing to spend.” Through the years, Sun-Drop and its regional bottlers would be approached with new opportunities to rejoin the sport, but none of the sponsor pitches were affordable or worth the expense.

But a recent cold call from a marketer at JD Motorsports, a small-tier Nationwide Series team, has changed all that. Sun-Drop is making a return to the sport in nostalgic fashion this summer and is becoming one of NASCAR’s growing examples of how smaller companies are creating unique, outside-the-box ways of either maintaining what sponsorship presence they have or creating new ones to increase their brand exposure in an affordable manner.

NASCAR teams cognizant of the economy and shrinking sports marketing budgets are starting to look to these smaller companies for support knowing that the larger companies have either left the sport entirely or can no longer afford to write multi-million dollar checks to cover a team’s entire season.

“The door is opening now and teams are willing to talk to companies like us and work with the smaller players in light of the economy,” said Scott Hunt, CEO of Hunt Brothers Pizza, who recently purchased six primary races from Richard Petty Motorsports to sponsor the No. 44 car.

“We’ve been cooking pizzas inside the garage area and feeding the teams. A.J. [Allmendinger] has handed out free T-shirts and our brand recognition has increased. Last year at our first race in Talladega everyone asked ‘who are you?’ That was not the case this year.” SCOTT HUNT, Hunt. Bros. Pizza”If the pricing was what it was three or four years ago, we couldn’t have done it,” Hunt added. “It’s made everyone a little more humble.”

To be more efficient with its sponsorship budget, State Water Heaters revamped their strategy and approach. The company chose to put their resources into a hospitality program created by a Charlotte, N.C.-based marketing agency where driver Ward Burton acts as a trackside tour guide of sorts. Instead of sponsoring a low-level team with a car that gets little television exposure, State Water Heaters decided to employ Burton as the company’s race day representative to entertain the company’s guests and most important customers.

Teams and companies are learning to reinvent the sponsorship sale so that both sides are happy. Value for the sponsor can have several different meanings in today’s NASCAR. Hunt said he discussed sponsorship options with several different Cup Series teams in order to increase brand awareness for his growing pizza company located in rural areas and convenient stores.

His first foray into the sport was brief and came in 2008 with Haas Automation. The company sat out at the beginning of the 2009 season to see what the economy was going to do. While the economy didn’t really improve much, the sponsorship opportunities and hood space among NASCAR teams did.

The pizza chain decided to go with Richard Petty Motorsports and its new driver A.J. Allmendinger, because the team was willing to accommodate the company’s goals.

It could afford to buy six races, but not the costly activation programs required to further reach NASCAR’s loyal fans. Therefore, the Petty team helped Hunt with a greater credentialing system that allowed Hunt’s larger distributors and potential clients to attend the Cup races.

Meanwhile, Hunt and Allmendinger have used low-budget grassroots activation methods to get the pizza into the mouths of many. “We’ve been cooking pizzas inside the garage area and feeding the teams,” Hunt said. “A.J. has handed out free T-shirts and our brand recognition has increased. Last year at our first race in Talladega everyone asked ‘who are you?’ That was not the case this year.”

Some economists and marketers note longtime and wealthy sponsors are still pulling out of NASCAR, but there are still a percentage of companies who are spending and even increasing their sponsorship budgets.

Kyle Busch helped push sales for NOS Energy drink through a case-by-case sales incentive program and a $5,000 personal services agreement that started in 2007.

Through NASCAR exposure and Busch’s success on the track, the partnership has grown into a $4 to $5 million Nationwide Series sponsorship agreement this season, according to his Motorsports Management team.

At the end of the day, companies know how valuable the loyal NASCAR fan base can be to their bottom dollar.

In Gaffney, S.C., this week, employees at the Sun-Drop bottling company are celebrating their return to the sport with JD Motorsports and are hoping to grow with young driver Danny O’Quinn Jr. in the Nationwide Series No. 01 car this season. And the sponsorship agreement with Sun-Drop, which begins at Lowe’s Motor Speedway with a paint scheme similar to what Dale Earnhardt Jr. ran on a Late Model car in Myrtle Beach, S.C., also came to be with a cold call and a face-to-face meeting at the bottling company.

“I told them if you want someone in the top 10, that’s not us. But we will qualify for every race and we will get your apparel and merchandise program off the ground and into the stores. They just couldn’t find a home where they didn’t have to spend millions of dollars,” Priscaro said. “We are just honored Sun-Drop chose us, chose our team to make their return to NASCAR racing.”

Everyone is leery of the economy and tightening their budgets, but when teams and companies look outside of traditional practices and markets, lucrative partnerships are formed. www.nascar.com