With the sport sponsorship market more competitive than ever, properties are in search of unique opportunities to provide much-needed differentiation to their sponsorship portfolios. As new brands also look to establish market share through sport sponsorship, we felt it was timely to compile five tech-based sponsorship categories that you should monitor throughout the rest of the year. As additional categories emerge, we will continue to release additional updates in this content series.

 

5 emerging sponsorship categories, broken down with a description and example of a notable deal

1) Enterprise Low Code Application Platforms (ELCAPs)

Why is it something to keep your eye on?

  • With this technology still emerging and deployment picking up speed, limited sponsorship activity here suggests that there likely aren’t exclusivities in place that would inhibit deals being done with these brands. ELCAPs are experiencing high revenue growth and strong sales, giving brands in this category the financial capacity to engage in partnerships. The increasing competition between these players whose sole product offering are these platforms suggests that partnerships could be an avenue to start separating themselves from one another and generate consumer awareness.

Deal Example:

 

2) Health Tech

Why is it something to keep your eye on?

  • During COVID when traditional healthcare practices were forced to be temporarily altered, telehealth rose in popularity from the point of diagnosis through convenient delivery of medication. The pandemic forced consumers to change their behaviors faster than this type of technology generally would have been adopted, therefore now is the time for brands to capture market share as there is less work to do in educating consumers on the benefits and applications of these products,

Deal Example:

 

3) Artificial Intelligence

Why is it something to keep your eye on?

  • While the notion of AI is not new, the widespread consumer adoption has thrust AI into the mainstream. For example, ChatGPT was adopted by over 1 million users within five days of release. Additionally, AI brands will continue to have the financial capacity to support sponsorship, as the forecasted industry CAGR is 37.3% through 2030 (Statista & Forbes). The rapid growth of this category, showcased by a 14x increase in the number of AI brands since 2000, will require brands to creatively differentiate themselves, with sponsorship serving as a strong vehicle to do so. (Statista & Forbes).

Deal Example:

 

4) iGaming

Why is it something to keep your eye on?

  • Whereas online sports betting is now legal in around half of US states, online casinos are open in only six states. Legislatures are recognizing that the margins on online sportsbooks are much lower than those of online casinos, and therefore will be enticed to act to legalize online casinos for the potential tax revenue increases that come from this additional revenue stream. (Forbes). Similar to the rush for customer acquisition that was seen with the adoption of legalized online sports betting in states through partnerships with properties in those states, you can expect a similar rush in customer acquisition as more states go live with iGaming.

Deal Example:

  • At the beginning of this year, the Alfa Romero Formula One team inked a partnership with Stake, a rising online casino and sports book that allows users to place bets using cryptocurrency. Stake offers a range of traditional casino games, in addition to betting across a large number of sports, providing accessibility to those looking to engage in gambling and sports wagering. It’s set to become the team’s title sponsor for the 2023 season, in what was described as a “record-breaking” multi-year deal.

 

5) 5G-Enabled

Why is it something to keep your eye on?

  • This next generation of mobile networks is paving the way for new technologies, products and use cases. 5G enabled networks continue to be deployed all over the world and will be a driver in enhancing the fan experience and stadium operations. As we see the different use cases for 5G grow – cloud service provider, network management, security, testing – it is important for properties to understand the intricacies of this category. “5G Enabled Technology” is a broad and encompassing category and if properly segmented into subcategories could be a gateway to increasing sponsorship spend and partners. As properties continue to understand the impact of 5G technology on their business – establishing strategic partnerships will be vital to powering these technologies and the opportunity to bring in new sponsors with specific use cases will increase.

Deal Example:

  • Fortinet has partnered with the PGA TOUR as a championship title sponsor as well as other properties to showcase its IT security capabilities. Fortinet’s mission is to make possible a digital world that organizations can always trust by securing devices, people and data everywhere.

 

For any questions about prospecting or researching new sponsorship opportunities, email Greg Krug at Greg@NVGT.com