Global Ad Trends: Sports Sponsorship Investment

James McDonald, Rob Clapp

This report summarises the latest research from WARC's Data platform, with a focus on sports sponsorship investment. Key findings include: 
  • Global sports sponsorship is approaching $50bn as growth outpaces traditional media – spend is set to rise 5.0% this year, the strongest growth in a decade.
  • In North America, the NFL, NBA and MLB draw $3.97bn from sponsors, while in Europe, football attracts €4.7bn from brands per season.
  • Asian spend has been buoyed by the Olympics, Rugby World Cup, FIFA World Cup and IPL cricket.
  • E-sports spend is growing rapidly as brands seek a path to hard to reach, engaged and enthused fans.
  • Brands shrugged off controversy and invested record amounts in 2018 FIFA World Cup, while Dentsu ensures Tokyo...

WARC subscribers can sign in to keep reading

Not a subscriber?

Schedule your live demo with our team today

WARC helps you to plan, create and deliver more effective marketing

  • Prove your case and back-up your idea

  • Get expert guidance on strategic challenges

  • Tackle current and emerging marketing themes

We’re long-term subscribers to WARC and it’s a tool we use extensively. We use it to source case studies and best practice for the purposes of internal training, as well as for putting persuasive cases to clients. In compiling a recent case for long-term, sustained investment in brand, we were able to support key marketing principles with numerous case studies sourced from WARC. It helped bring what could have been a relatively dry deck to life with recognisable brand successes from across a broad number of categories. It’s incredibly efficient to have such a wealth of insight in one place.

Insights Team
Bray Leino

You’re in good company

We work with 80% of Forbes' most valuable brands* and 80% of the world's top top-of-the-class agencies.

* Top 10 brands