More Than Just The Score

New arenas to put teams into the big-money game- Crain's New York Business.com

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 04:02:00 +0000

New arenas to put teams into the big-money game- Crain's New York Business.com:

"New arenas to put teams into the big-money game
Complexes put NY on top in sports; luxury boxes will beef up revenues

When the Prudential Center, home of the New Jersey Devils, opened in October with concerts by native son Jon Bon Jovi, it became the first new sports complex in the New York area in a quarter-century.

It was just the opening act. Five other state-of-the-art, amenity-filled arenas are slated to open over the next year or two. The new residences of the Red Bulls, Mets, Yankees, Nets, Jets and Giants will have a positive economic impact on New York as well as the teams. All of the projects are being accomplished with a mixture of private and public funding.

Besides raising the value of the franchises and making the teams financially healthier, the sports palaces will uplift the city as a tourist destination. They have already vaulted New York into the sports stratosphere.

'New York is further propelled to the top,' says Dan Migala, editor of sports marketing newsletter The Migala Report. 'That the public and private sector can sustain [the development of all the complexes] at the same time points to the health of New York.'"

www.kansascity.com | 12/26/2007 | Patriots-Giants game to be simulcast on NFL, CBS, NBC network

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 04:01:00 +0000

http://www.kansascity.com/sports/story/419419.html:
"Patriots-Giants game to be simulcast on NFL, CBS, NBC network

Saturday night’s game between the New England Patriots and New York Giants is too big for just one television network. Or even two.

The Patriots’ quest to finish the season with a historic 16-0 record will be carried on an unprecedented three-way national simulcast of NFL Network, CBS and NBC.

Since its inception in 2006, NFL Network has not been able to work out an arrangement with some of the nation’s biggest cable distributors, including Time Warner, which serves most of Kansas City."

Inside Bay Area - Sports events rarely take timeouts these days

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 03:59:00 +0000

Inside Bay Area - Sports events rarely take timeouts these days: "Sports events rarely take timeouts these days

THERE ARE chores to be done, or maybe the kids need help with their homework. Hey, if it's nice outside, there's always the possibility of going for a walk or a bike ride. If those are the choices, there must really be nothing going on in the world of sports.

Despite long seasons and comprehensive television coverage, there remain a few days on the calendar on which sports fans are left starving for something to watch. No football, no Major League Baseball and no meaningful basketball or hockey games. Just you and the worn-out channel buttons on your remote control.

'Sports fans are usually flipping through the channels (on slow days),' said Ted Griggs, executive vice president and general manager of Fox Sports Net Bay Area, 'trying to get a fix.'

Christmas Eve typically is one of those days, but it's not alone. Such days include the day before and the day after MLB's All-Star Game, the day after baseball's regular season ends, the Sunday between the NFL's conference championship games and the Super Bowl and the day after the NCAA's Selection Sunday for men's basketball."

Sonics working to fill up KeyArena seats

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 03:58:00 +0000

Sonics working to fill up KeyArena seats:
"Sonics working to fill up KeyArena seats : Ticket promotions aim to build new fan base

With Ray Allen and the red-hot Boston Celtics in town, a sold-out KeyArena figures to be hopping Thursday night. If only it were that easy all the time for the Sonics' marketing staff.

Few professional sports franchises have had to overcome the hurdles thrown at Sonics' ticket sellers this season. First you've got a rebuilding team off to its worst start since 1972 with an 8-20 record after parting ways with its two biggest stars, Allen and Rashard Lewis.

Then there's the ownership issue, with Clay Bennett not only threatening to move the team, but officially filing for relocation to Oklahoma City after failing to generate much enthusiasm for a new $500 million arena."

The Upper Deck Company :: End Zone Frenzy: Upper Deck Sponsors Super Bowl Touchdown Dance Video Contest

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 16:04:00 +0000

The Upper Deck Company :: End Zone Frenzy: Upper Deck Sponsors Super Bowl Touchdown Dance Video Contest:

"The Upper Deck Company is sponsoring a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for two lucky football fans to attend the biggest game of the year! That's right; a pair of tickets to Super Bowl XLII in Glendale, Arizona, along with airfare and hotel accommodations for two awaits the winner(s) of the most original, entertaining touchdown dance video entry in Upper Deck's first-ever 'NFL TD Dance Challenge.'

Contestants simply need to submit a videotaped representation of their best touchdown dance and subsequent celebration on or before January 11, 2008, to http://upperdecksweepstakes.magnify.net/. Entries can be between 30 seconds and two minutes in length and good taste is encouraged. Taping locations can include actual football fields (with end zones and goalposts), grassy back yards, and even local beaches. The backdrops used will be part of the creative process to be decided by the individual videographers. Use of interesting scenery and unique dialog -- 'touchdown rants' -- will be additional parts of the challenge. Upper Deck will prescreen each of the video entries as they are uploaded to the site and any that contain inappropriate gestures and/or language will not be posted for public viewing."

Gatorade gives audience an early look at Super Bowl ads - USATODAY.com

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 16:02:00 +0000

Gatorade gives audience an early look at Super Bowl ads - USATODAY.com:

"Pre-game advertising in the NFL's Super Bowl used to mean buying a cheaper ad slot in the hours leading up to the game. This year it means promoting the pricey ads in the months leading up to the Feb. 3 ad fest on Fox.

Starting Thursday, Gatorade gives a sneak peek at their Super Bowl ads featuring sports stars Derek Jeter and Dwayne Wade.

As demand and prices continue to rise for the huge TV event, marketers are trying to get more bang for their 2.7 million bucks, the record ad rate for 30 seconds in this year's game. As opportunities for big audience shows continue to diminish, advertisers are willing to pay more.

Ads used to be top secret until game day, but marketers are finding that more visibility and promotion in advance of the game can help cover the cost of the ads by generating more brand awareness or juicing sales."

Bloomberg.com: North American

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 16:00:00 +0000

Bloomberg.com: North American:

"The New England Patriots' quest for an undefeated season is as big a bonanza for the National Football League as for the team's fans.

While building a 14-0 record, the Patriots have attracted the largest audience in cable television history and the most viewers ever for a Sunday night NFL game. The team also generated the biggest TV audience for a Sunday afternoon game in at least two decades for the most-watched U.S. sports league. Sales of team merchandise are up, too.

``They are just a steam engine going down the tracks,'' said CBS Sports President Sean McManus, whose network is televising this weekend's New England game against the 1-13 Miami Dolphins in Foxborough, Massachusetts. ``The Patriots have been a great story for us. They're the driving force behind our ratings.''"

This game brought to you by ...- NJ.com

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 15:59:00 +0000

This game brought to you by ...- NJ.com:

"The next time you're at your child's high school basketball game, glance around the gym for ads. The walls may look more like a professional sports arena than a space for amateur athletes.

Faced with tight budgets and pressure from taxpayers, school officials across the state are considering corporate sponsorships for high school gyms and sports fields to bolster revenue.

Four years ago, the Ritacco Center, a sports and entertainment venue, opened at Toms River High School North. Today, the center is known as the Poland Spring Arena at the Ritacco Center after the bottled-water company agreed to pay the school district $50,000 a year for naming rights."

Bloomberg.com: North American

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 15:53:00 +0000

Bloomberg.com: North American:

"Loyal Dallas Cowboys fans are fuming.

The team is asking them to pay as much as $150,000 for the right to buy season tickets for games at the $1.1 billion stadium it's building, to open in 2009. That's on top of $340 for each game ticket.

``It's way too much money,'' said Steve Block, a Dallas attorney who has had Cowboys season tickets for more than two decades. He said team owner Jerry Jones is ``not interested in the average fan. He's only interested in maximizing his income.''

Block said he isn't alone in refusing to buy a 30-year license for season tickets at the new stadium. That may not be cause for Jones to worry. He's betting that plenty of Cowboys fans are willing to pay premium prices for the prestige associated with an elite team, sports business analysts say.

``When you go to a Cowboys game, you're not just going to a football game,'' said Marc Ganis, president of SportsCorp Ltd., a Chicago-based marketing consulting firm. ``There's a status associated with going to a Cowboys game.''"

Student support a mixed bag at sports events

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 16:44:00 +0000

Last week, the men's soccer team's impressive season came to a disappointing end with a loss to Old Dominion University in the NCAA tournament. A crowd of 802 students turned out for the Bears' biggest game of the year, among them a handful of die-hard fans.

"I've been to quite a few soccer games," said Ross Leskin '11. Then he clarified: He has been to every single home game the team played this season.

But Leskin's ardent support of Brown athletics is far from the norm on campus. A recent Herald poll found that a slim majority - 52.7 percent - of undergraduates said they have attended a varsity sports game this semester. Though 69 percent of freshmen reported they had attended a game, only 47.4 percent of sophomores, 50.3 percent of juniors and 44.3 percent of seniors said they had.

The Herald poll was conducted from Nov. 5-7 and has a 3.9 percent margin of error with 95 percent confidence. A total of 621 Brown undergraduates completed the poll, which was administered as a written questionnaire to students in the University Post Office at Faunce House and in the Sciences Library.

Lenovo to end Olympic sponsorship after 2008

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Wed, 05 Dec 2007 16:43:00 +0000

Lenovo (0992.HK: Quote, Profile, Research), China's top computer maker, said it will end its global sponsorship of the Olympic Games after the Beijing Games next year.

"The company's marketing strategy is evolving to pinpoint opportunities that serve strategic needs in targeted geographies," said a statement on the company's Web site.

Lenovo, which is battling Taiwan's Acer Inc (2353.TW: Quote, Profile, Research) as the world's No. 3 PC maker, was the first Chinese company to be a global sponsor of the Olympics. The company's sponsorship included the Winter Games in Torino, Italy, and the upcoming Beijing Summer Games.

Global sponsorships offer companies exclusive rights to market their brand, but come at great cost.

Fortune eludes Huizenga's Dolphins -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 15:45:00 +0000

Fortune eludes Huizenga's Dolphins -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com:

"H. Wayne Huizenga built three Fortune 500 companies and is on the Forbes 400 list of the world's richest people.

He's been recognized worldwide for his success as an entrepreneur.

But his 0-10 Dolphins, who haven't played in the postseason since the 2001 season, are destined for a sixth consecutive winter without a trip to the playoffs. Only three teams in the NFL have a longer playoff drought.

Clearly, victories in the boardroom don't guarantee on-field performance, making it common for fans to wonder: How can a guy be such a successful businessman and be so unsuccessful when it comes to his sports team?"

BONHAM AND HINCHEY: Corporate suites at sports events serve a purpose : Columns & Blogs : The Rocky Mountain News

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 15:44:00 +0000

BONHAM AND HINCHEY: Corporate suites at sports events serve a purpose : Columns & Blogs : The Rocky Mountain News:

"For many people, attending sports events is a way to flee the office. For others, it's a way to profitably extend their business activities, as is the case with corporate hospitality suites at virtually every sports facility and marquee event.

Corporate suite accommodations have risen to a level of extraordinary lavishness. To outside observers, they may seem like tailgating on steroids. They can range from $30,000 annually for rather modest accommodations to more than $180,000 a year.

According to sports marketing expert Phil Schaaf, author of Sports Inc.: 100 Years of Sports Business and Sports Marketing: It's Not Just a Game Anymore, it wasn't always this way.

'In the early days,' Schaaf said, 'sports marketing meant nothing more than selling tickets and some billboard space inside the stadium. But as the 'skybox,' or luxury suite, became an endogenous part of facilities (the first ones were at the Astrodome, which opened in 1965), corporate hospitality and sponsorships evolved organically . . . though it took until the mid-1980s for it to become a full-fledged industry, the key event being the 1984 'Ueberroth Olympics' in Los Angeles."

Bloomberg.com: North American

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 15:38:00 +0000

Bloomberg.com: North American:

"Alex Rodriguez and the Yankees have agreed to a $30 million marketing deal, the last significant hurdle in a contract that returns the American League Most Valuable Player to New York, the New York Times reported on its Web site.

Rodriguez will make $275 million in salary over the 10-year agreement, the biggest contract in baseball history, the Times said.

He will also share in revenue the Yankees generate by marketing his home run milestones, the Times said, citing a Major League Baseball official it didn't identify. Rodriguez, who has 518 career home runs, will receive $6 million for tying totals of Willie Mays (660), Babe Ruth (714), Henry Aaron (755) and Barry Bonds (762), and another $6 million when he breaks the record, the Times said. "

From the Bengal's web site and the eWeekly

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 18:17:00 +0000

Battle's son part of IMG deal with Host

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 16:54:00 +0000

The collegiate sports marketing landscape was shaken up Monday with the announcement that a global sports powerhouse is set to buy Host Communications Inc., the media-rights holder for University of Tennessee athletics and several other schools and athletic conferences.

IMG, a pioneer in the field of sports marketing upon its founding in 1960, said Monday that it has reached an agreement to buy Lexington, Ky.-based Host, with the deal expected to close by Thursday. Triple Crown Media Inc., Host's publicly traded parent company, said the sale price will be about $74.3 million.

The acquisition marks a continued push into college sports by IMG, which earlier this year bought Atlanta-based Collegiate Licensing Co., a trademark licensing business that represents nearly 200 schools, conferences and other collegiate properties.

Rocky Mountain News - Denver and Colorado's reliable source for breaking news, sports and entertainment: Other Business

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 02:05:00 +0000

Rocky Mountain News - Denver and Colorado's reliable source for breaking news, sports and entertainment: Other Business:

"The Colorado Avalanche's marketing team has concentrated on offense.

The more aggressive campaign comes after the club last year failed to skate into the playoffs for the first time since moving to Denver in 1995 and saw its amazing sellout streak snapped at 487 games.

Owner Kroenke Sports has boosted advertising spending, formed a sales group devoted to the team and turned on the creativity, mailing out hockey gloves and DVDs to top CEOs to try to pique their curiosity. "

Amid rumored exit, Sonics face marketing challenge

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Fri, 19 Oct 2007 15:56:00 +0000

Amid rumored exit, Sonics face marketing challenge:

"Every October, a mammoth distraction emerges on the right side of the northbound Alaskan Way Viaduct. Hovering over the freeway as drivers speed into downtown is a large billboard marking the beginning of another Sonics season.

In previous years, the promotion of the city's NBA team has been uncomplicated. Just 12 months ago, the billboard featured Ray Allen, Luke Ridnour and Rashard Lewis -- the team's three most popular players -- as the team celebrated its 40th anniversary.

It didn't require a marketing genius to package the Sonics during their glory years. It's an organization, during the good times, that always featured popular players and engaging personalities. When the club was a fixture at KeyArena -- and lease disputes were years away -- the Sonics were an easy sell as fall transformed into winter."

Marketing a Videogame as a Virtual NBA Experience

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Tue, 16 Oct 2007 18:51:00 +0000

As technology renders all types of videogames more life-like, sports games based on actual athletes and teams are especially impacted by the changes.

Sports videogames, such as this year's NBA 2K8, are becoming so realistic that watching a real-life game and playing in a virtual contest are remarkably similar—except that in the virtual game, fans can score points.

To take advantage of that new sense of realism, game marketers are facing the challenge of how to promote their products less as digital software with techie features and sophisticated capabilities, and more as experiential simulations of real-life events. It is a shift also faced by many marketers of mainstream technology-oriented products—computers, TVs and PDAs—which are downplaying the bells and whistles and focusing on the heightened user experience.

Bearcats' coach also winning at marketing

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 00:35:00 +0000

Bearcats' coach also winning at marketing:
(Thanks to Mark Steedly for the link)

"As the son of a former Massachusetts politician and a press agent for Gary Hart's presidential campaign in 1984, University of Cincinnati football coach Brian Kelly knows the value of public relations.

He chastised the local media for not attending Big East Conference media day in July in Newport, R.I. He dictated a diary during camp for The Cincinnati Enquirer. He has made it a priority to engage college students, high schools, the media, virtually anyone who will listen, during his first year on the job. "

The Game: MLB Partners Play On In Playoffs; Wal-Mart, Sprint Fantasy A Reality

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 15:30:00 +0000

I T'S been a year of big numbers at Major League Baseball: A new single-season attendance record [79.5 million], growth in overall revenue and greater activation from marketing partners, which continues into the playoffs.

Of MLB's 20 official sponsors, 17 are running baseball-themed TV spots, including Holiday Inn, DHL, State Farm and Pepsi [Aquafina, Gatorade]. All 20 are activating at various levels, with some running efforts that tie directly to the World
Series.

Chevrolet is the official presenter of the Roberto Clemente Award, which is given to one player, as voted on by fans, "based on commitment to community and understanding the value of helping others." The award will be presented during Game 3 of the World Series, scheduled for Oct. 27 at the home site of the National League champion. Sharp is the official presenter of the Hank Aaron Award, given to the top offensive player in both the American and National Leagues, also as voted by fans. That will be presented during Game 4 on Oct. 28. There will be giveaways to fans, sponsored by specific MLB partners still to be named, in Game 1 [Oct. 24] and Game 2 [Oct. 25], respectively, both played at the home site of the American League champ.

Sports Shoemakers Scramble for China Footwear Market

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 15:27:00 +0000

Global sports shoemakers Adidas and Nike are battling for the number one position in China's 1.3 billion-footwear market. A third local brand, Li Ning, targets the rural market in areas not reached by the two giant manufacturing firms.

The Beijing Summer Games is turning out to a good excuse for both companies to boost its sales in China. Adidas paid $80 million to be the official sponsor of the 2008 Oympics, the CNN reported. To support its marketing campaign, Adidas will open at least two stores a day in China. After the summer games, Germany-based Adidas expect to grab the number one spot currently held by Nike.

Adidas started its marketing blitz two years ago, attracting the youth market in China by supporting the country's football and women's volleyball events and tapping sports superstar David Beckham as advertising model.

Mets collapse cost team millions - Sep. 30, 2007

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 20:43:00 +0000

Mets collapse cost team millions - Sep. 30, 2007:

"The New York Mets lost more than a playoff spot, their pride and probably some of their fan base this past week. The franchise lost millions of dollars, while the players themselves lost at least $20,000 apiece, if not hundreds of thousands of dollars.

The Mets capped one of the worst collapses in baseball history, having led the National League's Eastern Division by 7 games with 17 to go, by falling Sunday to the last-place Florida Marlins, 8-1.

They lost six of seven games in a final home stand against teams with losing records, and missed out on not only the division title but even the wild card spot in the baseball playoffs, which goes to the second place team in each league with the best record."

Q+A: NHL Marketing Power Play Skates League Off Thin Ice

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 20:42:00 +0000

Q+A: NHL Marketing Power Play Skates League Off Thin Ice:

" The National Hockey League was founded in 1917 and is closely associated arguably with two of the greatest icons in sports: the Stanley Cup championship trophy and the Zamboni ice-resurfacing machine. But that wasn't enough to prevent a major crisis when a dispute between players and management saw the NHL shut down for the entire 2004-05 campaign. Still feeling the effects of that lockout, the league began its 90th season this past weekend with a slate of attention-grabbing events, including the first regular-season NHL games in Europe, a two-game series between the defending champion Anaheim Ducks and the Los Angeles Kings at The O2 Arena in London. Also planned for 2007-08, which has its North American launch Oct. 3, is an outdoor game on New Year's Day between the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Buffalo Sabres at 73,000-seat Ralph Wilson Stadium [home of the NFL's Bills]. Pepsi's Amp energy drink will be title sponsor. On Oct. 9, the league will hold a fanfest in New York to celebrate the Oct. 12 opening of its flagship retail store, NHL Powered by Reebok, and its new corporate offices. Features include a hockey-themed Starbucks selling hockey-themed drinks, a studio for live broadcasts, high-def screens to show NHL clips and games in real time, and stations with access to NHL videogames and NHL.com."

Heidi Ueberroth: The NBA marketing executive is behind a big global expansion

email.mccauley@gmail.com (Jeff McCauley) — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 14:40:00 +0000

In China, the media have dubbed her the "NBA Goddess of Wealth." With 83% of 15- to 24-year-olds in that country calling themselves fans of the National Basketball Assn.—up from 75% last year—there's money to be made. Few are more aware of that than Heidi Ueberroth, 42. As president for global marketing partnerships and international business operations, she has helped the NBA forge an unrivaled global presence, with games now airing in 215 countries and 41 languages. She has become something of a celebrity. "On one Chinese game we were televising, the announcer would say, 'There's Heidi,' as the camera cut to her," says NBA Commissioner David Stern.

Ueberroth grew up in California's San Fernando Valley, the second of four kids. She became fluent in French from spending a year abroad in high school and took a job marketing tennis at Ohlmeyer Communications in Paris after completing her English degree at Vanderbilt University. She joined the NBA in 1994 as director of international marketing, helping to build the NBA brand by selling TV rights around the world. "Heidi was the pioneer who built the relationships and put together the broadcasting deals," says Scott McCune, vice-president for worldwide sports, entertainment, and media at Coca-Cola (KO). When they met in 1994, he says, "We'd sit there, trying to determine the price of advertising in Prague."

Ueberroth cites some early mentors, starting with Stern and Deputy Commissioner Adam Silver. Her father, Peter, made millions in the travel industry before organizing the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympics and later becoming commissioner of Major League Baseball. "He taught me to be creative in problem solving," she says. "As a kid, whenever I'd look to him for an answer, I would get 15 more questions." Such experience no doubt helped her navigate a political and macho business led by a famously hands-on boss.