Commercialisation: Media, commercialisation and sponsorship

Question 1

What is a cost incurred by TV companies showing sport?

Answer 1

Television rights

Question 2

What does the TV audience and media influence?

Answer 2

The time of sporting events. Sport is aired at popular times in the week to make sure that the TV companies get the biggest audienced possible.

Question 3

What has sport benefitted from?

Answer 3

Technological developments. Tools like slow motion replays, hawk-eye and TMO (television match official) can all make sport more exciting for the TV audience and crowd.

Question 4

What are the types of media coverage?

Answer 4

• > social media
• > television
• > radio programmes
• > newspapers
• > internet

Question 5

What is commercialisation?

Answer 5

Commercialisation involves managing or running something for financial gain (money/profit). Almost every part of sport can be bought or sold.

Question 6

What organisations are the key players in the commercialisation of sport?

Answer 6

Teams, FIFA and businesses.

Question 7

What is the relationship between sport, media and sponsorship called?

Answer 7

The Golden Triangle

Question 8

What are the PROs of commercialisation for sponsors?

Answer 8

• More opportunities for to advertise

- Publicity and sales

Question 9

What is a main CON for commercialisation for sponsors?

Answer 9

• Reputation risk

Question 10

Who negatively affected Nike’s reputation when they were involved in a doping scandal?

Answer 10

Lance Armstrong

Question 11

What are some negative impacts of sponsorship and the media?

Answer 11

-LOWER INCOME
A sponsor may withdraw their sponsorship from the performer if the performer is not performing well (i.e. there has been a run of bad results). This may reduce a performers’ income but it could incentivise cheating to improve performances.

• INCREASED SCRUTINY
  Because of social media and technology, elite performers are constantly in the public eye. If a performer does anything out of the ordinary, this is immediately reported in the media.
• FREE TIME AND PRIVACY
  Sponsors usually make performers attend meetings and corporate (business) events. This means that the performer has to give up their free time and privacy.

Question 12

What are some positive impacts of sponsorship?

Answer 12

• INCREASED EARNINGS
  Performers earn money in exchange for accepting sponsorships and promoting products
• BETTER EQUIPMENT
  If an athlete or a team has a sponsor that can provide equipment, facilities or money, the athletes can spend more time training.
  This way they can improve their fitness and skills.

Question 13

What are positive effects sponsorship has on sport?

Answer 13

• GREATER INCOME
  Sponsorship is a huge source of income (money) for a lot of sports.
  This is good for sports because teams and performers can earn money from more things than just spectators.
  This can help to develop better sports’ facilities.
• SPONSOR POWER
  Sponsors can usually help to decide what is shown on TV. - Sponsors are deciding where they want their logos to be placed and even the position of the cameras to get as many people as possible seeing their products.

Question 14

What are some negative effects of sponsorship on sport?

Answer 14

• TIMING CHANGES
  Sponsors also decide start times to increase publicity. In the Premier League, the start times of matches have been changed to: Friday night football, Saturday early/late kick off, Super Sunday and Monday Night Football.
  Football matches may start at times that make it very inconvenient for away fans going to the game.
• MORE FOCUS ON “BIGGER” SPORTS
  The media quite often concentrates on the ‘bigger’ sports, leaving the ‘minor’ sports with very little. For example, the Premier League contract with BT Sport and Sky is worth over £5 billion from 2016/17-2019/20. That is an average of £10 million per team for a live game.
  This is the same annual (yearly) sponsorship that UK athletics receive from Sainsbury’s

Question 15

What are some positive impacts of sponsorship on officials?

Answer 15

• OPPORTUNITY TO TRAVEL
  Fixtures are played all over the world with European and international tournaments. So officials have the opportunity to travel.
• FAME
  Some officials in sports become just as famous as some of the performers (e.g. Mark Clattenburg, the football referee).
  The darts referee Russ Bray is almost as famous as any darts performers because of his distinctive voice
• HIGHER INCOME
  Elite level officials in rugby and football work full-time and earn £50,000-£100,000 per year.

Question 16

What is a negative effect of sponsorship on officials?

Answer 16

• MEDIA SCRUTINY
  Officials are heavily scrutinised (watched) in the media. Their decisions are constantly questioned. They can be dropped from the elite leagues because of this.

Question 17

What are some positive impacts sponsorship has on spectators?

Answer 17

• MORE MONEY
  Clubs having more money is good for spectators because teams can buy better players and play higher quality matches.
  Clubs can invest in new stadiums and facilities for their players and spectators. This makes for better viewing for fans.
• MORE MERCHANDISE
  There is a wider range of merchandise (stash) available for spectators to buy.
• MORE COVERAGE
  ‘Armchair’ supporters can choose and view their sport from different camera angles on TV.
  There are even specific sports channels (Sky Sports Football, Sky Sports F1), radio stations and newspapers that show and report on more sports than ever.

Question 18

What is a negative impact of sponsorship on spectators?

Answer 18

• LACK OF ATMOSPHERE
  The problem with viewing sport at home is that it takes away the atmosphere at the ground or stadium.
  TV companies have tried to make up for this by tactically placing microphones and cameras around stadiums to record the atmosphere.