Sports marketing comes of age
Lei Lei
China Daily
Publication Date : 08-07-2008


China's sports marketing will be improved by the Beijing Olympic Games, a senior sports marketing official has said.

"The 2008 Beijing Olympic marketing programme has boosted the development of China's sports market," said Ma Jilong, director of the Chinese Olympic Committee (COC) Marketing Commission. "It will continue to benefit the market after the Games."

Since the launch of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Marketing Programme, the Beijing Olympic Games has attracted 51 sponsors, at different levels. For a new Olympic cycle after the Beijing Games, the COC has launched its market development programme for 2009-2012.

For the first time, besides the State General Administration of Sports (SGAS) seeking for sponsors as a whole, some individual sports administrative centres will also shoulder the task of attracting more financial support.

"More sports administrative centers are considering promoting and developing through marketing programs themselves, rather than depending on the support of the SGAS," Ma said.

Although concerns have been raised recently that some enterprises will lose interest in sports after the Beijing Olympics, Ma has a different opinion.

"Through sponsoring the Beijing Games, more enterprises will realise the value of sports brands and more will benefit from it," he said. "The big returns will encourage them to keep on in the next four-year cycle."

Besides powerful sports giants like adidas and Nike, Ma said he believed that more local companies will join China's sports marketing plan.

"Through the Beijing Games, more Chinese cities will realise the benefits of hosting sports competitions and more will apply to hold lower-level games, which will attract more local companies." Ma said.

"At the same time, the Beijing Games will arouse more people's interests in doing sports, so it will be good for the development of sports facility brands. For better development, those brands will find sponsoring sports events a good way for further promotion."

To encourage potential sponsors, Ma disclosed a plan for Olympic champions at the Beijing Games to travel across the country after the Games, which will offer more platforms for the Olympic sponsors to get returns.

"Through such marketing campaigns, both the sports governing bodies and the sponsors will mature," Ma said.