Modern sports sponsorships have always revolved around the concept of engagement and is only expected to heighten given the challenges that sports and entertainment will face in the coming months and years.

Traditionally sponsorships have been valued based on brand association and the reach the brand delivered. This was based on aggregated media metrics accumulated over any given period.

This would take into account metrics like live attendance, television ratings, fan avidity and digital performance online. In fact, digital experiences have been slow to generate revenue because of its superior ability to be measured. Every click, every view, every entry measurable and attributable to an individual … so much data and measurement that it was overwhelming and challenging to sell.

Many have said that “the best thing about digital is that it is measurable,” only in the next breath say that “the worst thing about digital is that it is measurable,” when trying to land sponsorship renewal.

How do you value something that has infinite inventory? How also do you compare that to a simple advertising billboard in a cluttered world that also delivers millions of people watching a live event plus interacting on their chosen mobile device … AT THE SAME TIME.

Sports and entertainment have been gradually transitioning from a place and time when signage was valued based on being visible to most people during a live event, to now being able to deliver with pinpoint accuracy 1000 fans interested in a test drive over the 30 days.

The global pandemic has accelerated the process that was already well under way but it has certainly left some scrambling to fulfill those lost in-venue impressions with digital solutions.

Organizations that invested in technology platforms and partnerships understand how digital value has enhanced the live event’s power. They are the ones best positioned to hold onto sponsorship revenue and create net new revenue streams when we all get back to watching our favourite sports spectacles.