We’re entering a new era of sports sponsorship, here’s what you need to know

By Alex Henderson, Sports Sponsorship Lead at M+C Saatchi Fluency, part of M+C Saatchi Consulting

This article was first published in The Drum on 31 July 2025.

Brands spend over $100bn annually on sports sponsorships – not for impressions or logo placements, but for something more difficult and important to measure: meaning.

At its best, sponsorship is a statement of identity. It is how brands show up in the right moments, with the right communities, in a way that authentically says: this is who we are.In this new marketing era, brands crave cultural power. Sponsorship offers a transference of cultural power, the value of which cannot be replicated in other marketing disciplines.But while sponsorship ambition has evolved, measurement hasn’t. Rights holders still lean heavily on media equivalency models – outdated formulas that reduce sponsorship to the cost of a billboard. In a world where brand leaders are under significant pressure to prove marketing ROI, that’s no longer acceptable, and they need more help.The real value of sponsorship lies in what it shifts – not just what it shows.

Brand value

We’ve all seen sponsorships that clearly move the needle: they build relevance, unlock new audiences, or drive loyalty. But without sophisticated data tools and a clear strategy, it’s hard to explain why they worked – or justify the investment.

That’s the gap, and it’s holding the industry back.

It’s time to move from instinct to actionable insights. From one-off activations to repeatable brand-led sponsorships. From chasing impressions to building cultural connections with the right communities through conversations that will drive short- and long-term brand desire.

Cultural power provides a breakthrough framework for sponsorship. It reframes success and resonance, not just reach. It asks not just whether a brand has presence, but whether it mattered and how it influenced audiences.

This doesn’t mean trend-jumping. This calls for being consistently relevant, emotionally resonant, and, most importantly, living out your brand’s core values through the sponsorship experiences you bring to life.

The strongest sponsorships don’t just mimic culture – they actively shape it.

Achieving alignment

Here are four musts for culturally powerful sponsorships. Firstly, begin with business ambition. Anchor your commercial strategy with tangible goals such as entering new markets, building brand equity, increasing lifetime value, or acquiring new audiences. Let the business drive the brief.

Secondly, measure what moves people. Move beyond surface metrics. Tracking sentiment, behavior, and cultural power with sophisticated tools will provide you the insights and language you need in the boardroom.

Thirdly, plan from cultural moments, not partnership menus. Don’t default to signage or social posts. Do the research to map the moments your audiences care about. Then design brand-led experiences that will deliver meaning in those moments.

Fourthly, move from a gut feeling to repeatable success. Treat sponsorship like any strategic investment. Use consistent frameworks to track what works – and implement those learnings across your partnerships.

The most effective sponsorships don’t happen by accident. They’re the result of alignment – between ambition and execution, between brand and audience, between presence and purpose. When that alignment clicks, cultural power is increased and creative gets braver, internal teams rally behind investment, and business value is realized.

Exposure to impact

In part because of brand desire for cultural power, sponsorship is coming of age. In the coming years, we believe sponsorship can become one of the sharpest and most impactful tools in a marketer’s toolkit.

But it’s long overdue the reinvention that it will take to help it get there. The best leaders across industries already know it is a very powerful brand builder. Finding the right data partner and tools sophisticated enough to help prove will prove key.

Cultural power offers a decisive path forward – connecting brand desire, presence, influence, and cultural moments to business performance in ways that boards can understand and back.

It goes from an unorthodox line-item cost to strategic growth driver. From exposure to impact. From passive presence to cultural power transference.

And that’s when your brand isn’t just seen. It’s understood, desired, in demand – and shaping culture.