Sport MarketingAnalysis of all the essential aspects of sport marketing, illustrated with numerous real world case studies

For many people, sport is a leisure time activity, a hobby, a route to good health and well-being, possibly even a way of life – long may this continue! Yet it is increasingly accepted that sport is also an industry in its own right and, in some cases, a commercial... read moreactivity. The evidence is compelling: the United Nations believes that sport may account for almost 3% of global economic activity; in the European Union, the figure is thought to be around 1% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP); and in the UK sport is thought to generate around 2.5% of GDP. Estimates for the United States indicate that sport is worth around $300 billion per annum to the US economy. Contributing to these figures, some sports and sporting organisations are of such a size and scale that they warrant comparison with large, global organisations. For instance, Manchester United is reputed to have 100 million fans worldwide, while Real Madrid turns over almost $300 million worth of business each year. At the same time, there are numerous organisations across the world that are smaller in scale, more localised, often culturally specific, but no less important in terms of the impact they have on the commercial, economic or socio-cultural development of the countries in which they are located.

Whether large or small, national or international, rich or poor, each sport or sports organisation will inevitably face its own, sometimes very distinct, challenges. This could be an industrial challenge such as the need to restructure and reorganise; it could be a marketing problem such as falling attendances; it could be an issue of technological or regulatory change such as in broadcasting; it could be a human resource matter such as motivating workers. These challenges are increasingly set against a backdrop of sporting mega-change, that is, events beyond the control of any one individual sport. Such events include: technological change; internationalisation and globalisation; social change; a growth in power of television and the media; the proliferation of commercial sports rights markets; changes in service expectations; and the rise of professionalism, managerialism and commercialism in sport

It would be difficult, if not impossible, for any talk series, case study, book or otherwise, to address all the challenges facing a large number of sports. What this talk series therefore sets out to achieve is an examination of the major issues facing a representative sample of sports and sporting organisations across the world. In doing so the talk series aims broadly to do the following things:

• Provide case material and learning resources;
• Be an informative source about sport marketing;
• Stimulate interest in the area of international sport marketing;
• Enhance listener understanding of sport marketing;
• Illustrate and highlight key concepts in sport marketing;
• Provide an insight into the practical challenges facing sport marketers.

The talk series is intended to be a leading resource consisting of important concepts and high profile cases, delivered by leading sport marketing experts. As such, the editor believes that readers should derive numerous benefits by reading it that include:

• Cutting edge analysis of major international sport business concepts and cases;
• Clear and structured presentation and examination of key issues in sport marketing;
• Comprehensive diagnoses of leading sport marketing concepts and cases;
• A strong balance of academic and practical analysis and comment;
• An informative and comprehensive resource for those seeking a better understanding of developments in sport marketing.