3.2.4.7 - Commercialisation

Question 1

Define media

Answer 1

An organised means of communication by which large numbers of different people can be reached quickly

Question 2

Define commercialism

Answer 2

The process of attempting to gain money from an activity e.g. sport

OR

Treating sport as a commodity, involving the buying and selling of assets with the market as a driving force behind sport

Question 3

Define sponsorship

Answer 3

When a company pays for it’s products to be publicly displayed or advertised, usually as an attempt to increase the sales of it’s goods

Question 4

What are the 3 aspects of the golden triangle?

Answer 4

Sport
Business (commercialisation)
Media

Question 5

How does each part of the golden triangle interlink?

Answer 5

→ Without media coverage, sports are less attractive to sponsors who want their business or product to be published to as many people as possible.
→ The media uses sport to gain viewers, listeners and readers.
→ Business and sponsors use the media to advertise their products and services: organisations often pay substantial sums to sport and the media for advertisements.
→ Sports and sports performers are aware that they need to appear in the media to attract sponsorship, increase their profile and appeal to a wide audience - need to be more professionally managed as a result.

Question 6

Advantages to elite sport due to the golden triangle?

Answer 6

• Increased income for the sport by televising events
• Increased income is spent on: funding participation initiatives at grass roots and financial support to elite athletes
• Increased promotion of sport brings more fans and increases it’s popularity
• Increased sponsorship and income from business sources to pay for advertising at grounds and sporting events
• Sports are organised and funded
• Improved facilities benefit performer and spectator alike

Question 7

Disadvantages to elite sport due to the golden triangle?

Answer 7

• Sensationalist media reporting which focuses too much on negative aspects of sport
• The media and sponsors can dictate kick off times and scheduling of sports events, to the detriment of performers and fans
• The media and sponsors can change the nature of a sporting activity e.g. introducing more or longer advertisement breaks
• Only televise already popular, high profile sports
• Sponsors and the media can be too demanding on elite performers and coaches e.g. in terms of personal appearance
• Sponsorship deals can increase the pressure to win or maintain lucrative contracts

Question 8

What are the 5 types of media?

Answer 8

• Internet
• TV
• Social media
• Radio
• Newspaper and magazine

Question 9

Positive impacts on the media on sport?

Answer 9

• TV can transmit instant live images directly to large numbers of people interested in watching
• Satellite TV used sports to increase subscribers willing to pay extra to watch sports including football, cricket, rugby and golf
• OFCOM keep some sporting events ring fenced to ensure everyone can access them on terrestrial TV
• Can increase the profile of the sport and the individual performers within the sport
• Increased participation levels as a result of TV coverage
• Generates higher income and makes sport more appealing to sponsors
• Increases standards in performance as well as behaviour
• Brings in extra funding
• It can help educate the public about a sport

Question 10

Negative impacts of the media on sport?

Answer 10

• NGBs lose control to TV/sponsors meaning the traditional nature of the sport may be lost
• The media control the location of events as well as kick off times in some cases
• There are inequalities of coverage e.g. football gain at the expense of minority sports e.g. squash
• Demands of media and sponsors negatively impact on high level performers
• Can over sensationalise or over dramatise certain negative events in sport
• More breaks in play
• Ticket allocations can be given to sponsors instead of fans

Question 11

What is OFCOM?

Answer 11

The communications regulator in the UK (regulate television sector)

Question 12

What are ring fenced sporting events?

Answer 12

A number of sporting events at national and international level must be available for viewing on terrestrial

Question 13

Examples of ring fenced sports?

Answer 13

• FIFA World Cup
• Grand national and Epsom Derby
• Wimbledon finals
• Rugby union World Cup final
• Rugby league challenge cup final
• Olympics
• Paralympics
• Euros

Question 14

Is modern TV broadcasting the same as attending live events?

Answer 14

YES:
- better quality picture
- live/hawk eye
- more information
- watch as part of crowd in pubs/sports club
- shared experience with others

NO:
- lacks atmosphere
- commentator/producer
- shapes viewers’ experience
- less involvement with spectators
- no/little interaction with opposing supporters

Question 15

How is business linked to the golden triangle?

Answer 15

• Businesses use TV companies to promote/advertise their products.
• As sports coverage through highlights and live broadcasts attract such vast audiences, there is a prime opportunity for businesses to reach large audiences.
• Businesses give support to elite teams and performers in a variety of different ways including sponsorship, advertising contracts and product endorsements.

Question 16

What characteristics make sport attractive to businesses?

Answer 16

• has extensive media coverage
• gains large audiences, viewing figures and high levels of ticket sales
• links to professional/high profile sport
• players are contacted to perform with or endorse products
• they offer extensive advertising, merchandising or sponsorship deals
• winning is important as it creates a link with success
• the sport is media friendly/entertaining

Question 17

Benefits of sponsoring sports, clubs events and players?

Answer 17

• increased sales and promotion of a product
• increased brand awareness
• improved company image linked to the healthy image of the sport
• opportunities to entertain clients via corporate hospitality
• decreasing the amount of tax a company pays as a sponsorship tax is deductible

Question 18

Positive impacts of sponsorship on performers?

Answer 18

• increased wages, prize money and extrinsic rewards
• increased availability of professional contracts
• performers increasingly in public eye
• increased funding to pay for access to high quality training support and specialist equipment

Question 19

Negative impacts of commercial deals and sponsorship on performers?

Answer 19

• increased pressure to win (may lead to lombardian ethic)
• increase in deviant behaviour
• performers are treated as commodities - bought and sold for economic reasons - meaning sponsors become too demanding
• inequality of funding means performers in minority sports e.g. table tennis don’t see the benefits

Question 20

Why should players consider sponsors before accepting deals?

Answer 20

• performers are role models and influence the behaviour of others → association with certain products might not be appropriate
• if the nature of the product does not reflect the nature of the sport
• performers have a social duty to others and should ensure the deal does not negatively effect their reputation
• level of control a sponsor is potentially exerting on them

Question 21

Why should players not need to consider a sponsor before accepting a deal?

Answer 21

• if a product is legal, elite performers have a right to accept the sponsorship
• it is unfair to expect elite perfromers to engage in a protest or statement when there is financial consideration at stake
• performers do not ask to be role models
• if they don’t accept the offer, someone else is likely to

Question 22

Impact of the media on coaches and managers?

Answer 22

Positive impacts:
→ greater profile/public awareness of their role due to high media coverage
→ increased salary/job opportunities particularly in high profile sports e.g. football
→ greater funding from sponsors and media right sales - can develop players
→ easier to analyse opposition
→ learn from other coaches

Negative impacts:
→ greater pressure/expected to produce results and win
→ greater expectation from public to produce results
→ greater expectation to deal with media
→ hire and fire culture
→ coaches for sports with less coverage have less funding, making them financially disadvantaged
→ coaches at clubs with less coverage find it harder to attract the best performers, making them financially disadvantaged
→ media allows opposition access to team tactics

Question 23

Impact of the media on officials?

Answer 23

Positive impacts:
→ increase the profile of the official which increases public awareness of their important role in ensuring fairness in sport
→ an increase in salary wages and sponsorship and possibility of a full time job opportunity as part of an elite group of match officials e.g. in the premier league
→ increased funding to invest in support systems and training to improve standards if officiating and increased ability to learn from other officials
→ increased funding to invest in technology to aid officials in their decision making

Negative impacts:
→ increased pressure on officials to get decisions right
→ increased expectation to respond to media enquiries and give interviews explaining their decisions
→ risk of a possible demotion or loss of job if a faulty decision is highlighted in media
→ technology to aid decisions not always available in lower levels of sport
→ officials may become too dependent on media technology
→ high rewards at stake, may lead to bribery

Question 24

Positive impact of the media on spectators?

Answer 24

• increased performance standards
• improved quality of facilities
• improved viewing experience
• merchandise availability
• increased access to watch sport
• more variations of sport develop, providing alternative viewing experiences
• rule changes introduced provide extra interest and excitement for the spectator
• increased knowledge of sport, creation of role models for fans to idolise
• increased excitement when waiting for decisions

Question 25

Negative impact of media on spectators?

Answer 25

• increased cost to watch sport
• loss of traditional nature of sport
• increased number of breaks in play to accommodate adverts and decisions of officials
• fewer tickets available for the fans
• changes in kick off times to maximise viewing figures
• minority sports receive less coverage, major sports dominate the TV schedules
• links to team or player merchandise are sometimes viewed negatively due to their high cost and regularity of change

Question 26

Characteristics of commercial sport?

Answer 26

Commercial sport (especially association football, tennis and athletics) has close links with:

→ professional sport - it is high quality and has high skill levels
→ entertainment
→ contracts
→ athletes as commodities
→ widespread media coverage

Question 27

What is globalisation?

Answer 27

The process whereby nations are increasingly being linked together and people are becoming more interdependent via improvements in communication and travel

Question 28

How is globalisation seen in sport?

Answer 28

Seen via:

• the sponsorship of events
• the way the players are recruited to play for teams/compete in events in countries other than their own
• the spreading of different sports to ‘new nations’, e.g. the 1994 soccer World Cup which was successfully hosted in the USA
• increasing pressure on athletes to perform at their best; this may lead to some to use illegal substances to maintain high performance levels

Question 29

Impact of social media on sport?

Answer 29

• social media has changed the behaviour of both sports performers and sports fans
• performers create lots of excitement via their social media communications as opposed to other media channels such as newspapers
• more and more fans prefer getting sports news from Twitter/Facebook rather than from TV or national news websites
• YouTube is increasingly being used by athletes to help them achieve their goals e.g. posting videos of highlights to attract university scholarship/coaches
• allows top-level sports performers to build up large following and wider audience in a very short space of time
• elite performers have got into trouble for their postings on social media → they need to be trained to understand the responsibilities and liability that go with such global social media communication