The Future of Sports Sponsorship: Trends, Innovations, and Market Growth 

Before you dive in, if you are interested in sport sponsorship, check out these titles in our “sponsorship for sports” series:

• Resource Page for Sport and Athlete Sponsorship
• How to Write a Sports Sponsorship Proposal
• Why is Sponsorship Important in Sport?
• The Definitive Guide to Sports Fan Engagement
• The Rise of Insurance Companies in Sports Sponsorship
• The Advantages and Disadvantages of  Alcohol in Sport Sponsorship
• Sponsorship Trends in eSports: Understanding the Horizon
• A-Z Guide: Glossary of Key Definitions in Sports Marketing and Sponsorship

I think there’s hardly a post on this blog that doesn’t mention sports sponsorship. And that’s not as deliberate as it may seem, I promise. It’s just that sports sponsorship is huge. 

Since it’s so all-encompassing, I thought it was time to dedicate a post to what sports sponsorship has been to the sponsorship market so far in 2024 and what the future can hold. I’ve got plenty of insights to share with you, so don’t miss them!

Sports Sponsorship Growth Year Over Year

You don’t even have to be a sports fan to understand how massive sports have become in the sponsorship market. If you’ve ever caught parts of an F1 race or Super Bowl in passing, you can tell. 

According to Statista, in 2022, the global sports sponsorship market was valued at $97.35 million dollars. It had already been on a steady ascent for years to reach that point, and guess what? Growth hasn’t slowed down one iota.

In 2023, the market value climbed to $105.47 billion. And as for future projections? Statista has the sports sponsorship market reaching a value of $189.54 billion by 2030. That’s a growth of nearly $2 billion in about a decade. 

That’s not all. The Global Sports Sponsorship Market report sheds some light on how and where growth will occur in this sector between 2024 and 2032. The report estimates a compound annual growth rate or CAGR of 9.2 percent between 2024 and 2032. 

Their growth estimates for 2032 are lower than Statista’s, but why I chose this report is because it broke down some interesting information. 

For example, the report found that the three most popular sports sponsorship assets are signage, digital activations, and club and venue activations. 

Who Are the Biggest Sponsors in Sports?

According to the Global Sports Sponsorship Market report, here are 10 of the most significant players in the world of sports sponsorship:

• Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd, which has worked with the Pro Breaking Tour or PBT, Street League Skateboarding or SLS, World Surf League or WSL, and the Olympics
• Qatar Airways, which has teamed with the NBA and UEFA DOHA, a football championship
• Puma SE, an athletics brand with a history of working with many esteemed athletes, outfitting them in Puma gear 
• Monster Beverages Corporation, which has achieved sponsorships with MotoGP, Formula 1, snowboarding, BMX, motocross, and skateboarding, among others
• PepsiCo Inc., perhaps the biggest sports sponsor there is, teaming with UCL, NBA, NFL, MLB, and IPL 
• Nissan Motor Co. Ltd, whose portfolio of sports sponsorship projects includes cricket, US college sports, Formula E (a form of motorsport racing with electric cars), UEFA Champions League, and City Football Group 
• Red Bull GmbH, one of the most prolific names in sports sponsorship, having worked with football teams, Cloud9 (an esports team), the Red Bull Skydive Team, the Red Bull KTM Factory Racing team (MotoGP), and the EHC Red Bull Munich Team (ice hockey) 
• Nike Inc., which had the distinction of working with Michael Jordan 
• Hyundai Motor Company, a FIFA World Cup official partner that has partnered with AS Roma, Hertha BSC, Club Atletico de Madrid, and Chelsea FC, to name a few 
• Adidas AG, which has worked with the MLS for six figures 

What Are the Biggest Sports Sponsorship Trends? 

What’s happening out there in the great big world of sports sponsorship? Isn’t that the question? Let’s take a look at some of the most prominent trends affecting the market.

Sports Betting Is Only Getting Bigger

I’ve talked about sports betting and its relationship with sports sponsorship several times on the blog. The value of sports betting partnerships across big leagues like basketball and football are valued at $6.1 million. However, the value of renewed deals is about half that at $3.4 million.

This tells us that about half of the companies getting involved with sports betting sponsorships aren’t choosing to stay involved.

Does that necessarily boil down to these sponsors having had a negative experience? No, of course not. It could be because these are expensive sponsorship opportunities, or perhaps the limited audience appeal isn’t cutting it. (After all, you have to be of legal age to take part in sports betting).

Even still, I don’t see the sports betting sponsorship market slowing down anytime soon. Do I think it will always stay this way? No. I mean, look at markets like cigarettes or alcohol in sports sponsorship. Vices have their moments but usually don’t stick.

Of course, I don’t have a crystal ball. I could be entirely off the mark and sports betting deals stick around for a long, long time. After all, they’re a way for a whole new subset of businesses and brands that can get involved in sports sponsorship deals. 

VR and AR Are Super Valuable

As more brands embrace today’s technology, AR and VR have begun popping up across the world of sponsorship, not only in sports. However, these technologies are especially valuable in the sports sphere. 

You can drop exclusive merch at live games and events, allowing your audience to preview and try it on ahead of time using AR tech. You could also create virtual goods, such as 3D player cards your community of fans could trade, or even provide interactions with virtual mascots. 

I also love the idea of an AR-led scavenger hunt in an AR-created stadium. The possibilities are truly endless, and I believe we’ve only just scratched the surface here. 

And then there’s VR, which is more immersive still. It’s already possible to create a 360-degree viewing experience using VR headsets and equipment that makes fans feel like they’re right in the middle of the action during the game, even if they’re at home. 

Fans can change the focus of what they’re seeing on the screen, focusing on specific players in a way that you simply never could when watching television. 

And then of course, you can put the fans in the players’ shoes through the power of VR. With a headset and a basketball or baseball bat, fans can seem like they’re really on the field playing their heart out.  

Women’s Sports Sponsorship Continues to Shine

It took a while, but women’s sports sponsorships have finally surfaced. The increase in sponsorships with women’s teams between 2023 and 2024 increased by a staggering 22 percent, reported marketing resource Marketing Brew. That’s well over 5,300 active sponsorship deals with women’s teams.

The Ladies Professional Golf Association or LPGA has raked up the most sponsorship opportunities thus far, well over 1,100. Its year-over-year increase in sponsorships was 25 percent. 

Behind them is the Women’s Tennis Association or WTA with more than 1,050 sponsorships and a year-over-year increase of 34 percent. Then the Women’s National Basketball Association or WNBA has 500 sponsorship deals with a seven percent increase over past years. 

It’s not only women in the big leagues who are earning sponsorship opportunities, either. College players, such as Angel Reese of LSU, a big-name basketball player, won herself more than 25 sponsorship endorsements. 

AI Integrates with Sports Sponsorship 

Hundreds of thousands of brands are jumping on the AI bandwagon, including some in the sports sponsorship sphere. And honestly? I could see the number grow even higher. 

Already, there are AI-driven drone races. The Cheez-It Citrus Bowl sponsored by Cheez-It will embrace AI as a tool for reaching Gen Z. 

However, this is still largely an untapped market. Most of the major players and sports teams you can think of don’t work with any sponsors for AI purposes, so if you can jump in with a tantalizing offer, you could land a lucrative deal. 

What is Next for the Sports Sponsorship Market?

Okay, so what happens now in sports sponsorship? Well, let’s look at the trends to assess what could be on the forefront.

As I talked about, I don’t think sports betting in sponsorship is going away in the immediate future. It’s too lucrative. I feel like eventually, there will probably be pushback on it, but we aren’t there yet, so we might as well sit back and enjoy the ride.

Speaking of pushback, I feel like that could happen with AI too. The tide has already begun to turn on AI as people have realized what it’s capable of in real-time. I’m not saying there can’t be improvements made, but I feel like going all-in on AI in sports sponsorship is a bit risky. 

Attesting to the need to diversify the market and the growth of women’s sports sponsorships, I could see the market dividing even further. For example, there could be sponsorship deals with college athletes, or perhaps brands turn to a sport that hasn’t gotten a lot of acclaim yet.

I could even see children’s athletes getting sponsorships if they’re especially gifted and have bright futures. 

However, with the sports sponsorship market projected to achieve huge growth over the next decade, the need to diversify is more paramount than ever. If your offerings are the same ho-hum level of average as everyone else’s, you’ll struggle more to secure sponsorship.

You have to know your value proposition, create unique and engaging activations and assets, and prove your worth by achieving the goals you promise. 

FAQs

How effective is sports sponsorship?

Incredibly! Just look at some of the biggest deals that have ever come from a unification of sports teams/players and brands. Pepsi’s affiliation with the NFL was valued at $2 billion for 10 years of partnership. Michael Jordan has worked with Nike since 1984, a deal valued at $1.5 billion.

Need I go on? Okay. LeBron James is also with Nike for a lifetime deal to the tune of $1 billion. And Adidas has partnered with MLS since 2018 in a $700 million deal.

So yes, the money is out there, and these kinds of partnerships get massive amounts of publicity and hype. 

What sports are sponsored the most? 

Definitely motorsports, American football, soccer, and basketball right now, but there are up-and-coming contenders. They include pickleball, snowboarding, and mixed martial arts or MMA. 

Wrapping Up 

The future of sports sponsorship is bright; there’s no doubt about that. And while it continues to expand to new and interesting horizons, you’ll assuredly want to jump on the bandwagon if you haven’t already. 

You can always count on the team at the Sponsorship Collective to help you in areas like valuations and more. Contact us today!