Sponsorship and the Media

Building on the Golden Triangle, this lesson examines sponsorship and the media in greater detail. For Edexcel GCSE PE, you need to understand the different types of sponsorship, how the media covers sport, and the positive and negative effects of both on all stakeholders — athletes, spectators, sports, officials and sponsors themselves.

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What Is Sponsorship?

Sponsorship is when a company or individual provides financial or material support to a sport, team, event or athlete in return for publicity, brand association and commercial benefit.

Types of Sponsorship

Type	Description	Example
Financial	Direct payment of money	Barclays sponsoring the Women's Super League
Equipment/Kit	Providing clothing, footwear, gear	Nike supplying England football shirts
Facility/Venue	Naming rights for a stadium or arena	Emirates Stadium (Arsenal), Etihad Stadium (Man City)
Event	Sponsoring a tournament or competition	Wimbledon and Rolex; Flora London Marathon
Individual athlete	Personal endorsement deal	Ronaldo and Nike
Media/Broadcasting	Sponsoring TV coverage	"Sky Bet Championship"

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Why Do Businesses Sponsor Sport?

Reason	Detail
Brand exposure	Millions see the brand on kit, stadium, TV coverage
Positive association	The brand is linked with fitness, success, excitement
Targeted marketing	Sport audiences match key consumer demographics
Hospitality	VIP access for clients and business partners
Tax benefits	Sponsorship payments may be tax-deductible
Social responsibility	Supporting community and grassroots sport improves corporate image

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Effects of Sponsorship

On Athletes

Positive	Negative
Financial reward enables full-time training	Must attend sponsor events, reducing training time
Better equipment and facilities	Contractual obligations restrict personal choice (e.g. must wear sponsor's brand)
Increased profile and media exposure	Loss of sponsorship if performance drops or behaviour is poor
Access to sports science and nutrition support	Pressure to maintain image and avoid controversy

On Sport/Teams

Positive	Negative
More funding for facilities, coaching, youth development	Dependence on sponsor — withdrawal causes financial crisis
Higher profile attracts new fans and participants	Sponsor's brand may overshadow the sport's identity
Can invest in grassroots and community programmes	Sports that are less commercially attractive struggle to attract sponsors
Better competition standards	Scheduling may be influenced by sponsor demands

On Spectators

Positive	Negative
Better-quality events and facilities	Higher ticket and merchandise prices
More sport on television	Excessive advertising during coverage
Free-to-air coverage of some sponsored events	Events moved or rescheduled to suit sponsors
Access to sponsored apps and content	Bombardment with marketing messages

On Sponsors

Positive	Negative
Massive brand exposure	High cost — millions of pounds for top-level deals
Positive image association	If athlete/team behaves badly, brand is damaged by association
Targeted access to key demographics	Difficult to measure exact return on investment
Hospitality opportunities	Contract disputes can generate negative publicity

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The Media and Sport

The media includes television, radio, newspapers, magazines, the internet and social media. The Edexcel specification requires you to understand how different types of media cover sport and the effects on all stakeholders.

Types of Media