IRELAND'S FEMALE sporting heroes have become hugely favorable among the majority of businesses in Ireland. The likes of Kellie Harrington, Katie Taylor, Ellen Keane and Rachael Blackmore are seen as some of the stars with the most marketable personality's.
Onside produced an industry survey for it its annual Sponsorship Industry Report found in 2021 found that Ireland's female went through a breakthrough year and that a whopping nine out of 10 sponsors is an improvement on the 8 out of 10 last year.
The survey also looks at investment, strategy, opinion in Ireland, sponsor and rights holder spending.
According to @Onside_Spons survey, 2021 was a breakthrough year for women’s sport in Ireland with 9 out of 10 sponsors viewing women's sport as a significant opportunity.
Katie McCabe also made the industry’s 2022 top prospects list for the first time.https://t.co/WbNvcEOO4h— miedemastuff (@miedemastuff) January 13, 2022
The report found that a staggering 63% of businesses would prefer to see the likes of Taylor, Harrington and the likes of Blackmore as valid candidates to market their services.
The Irish sponsorship industry grew by 6% to reach €180m last year and is predicted to grow a further 8% this year, this has risen to €195m.The record €200m spend by businesses in 2018 is a target to hit, but the pandemic has an effect on that.
The survey also found more than half of sponsors will be increasing their sponsorship investment levels in 2022, up from 41% in 2021, and 70% expect sponsorship spending across the industry to increase.
The IRFU leading the line alongside the GAA, the Olympic Federation of Ireland and Horse Racing Ireland are some of the top sponsors.
John Trainor, founder and CEO of ONSIDE said:
“The pandemic affected all marketing activity, but after the initial shock in 2020, sponsorship has once again proved its worth to brands seeking to build new and better connections,” said Trainor
“The immediate decline was less steep than in advertising and other parts of the marketing mix, and its recovery has been steady and sustainable – much as we saw during the financial crisis earlier this century,” he said.
“A few eye-catching new mega sports deals are ready to be announced this quarter in rugby and golf, while established sectors including retail/supermarkets and banking/insurance sectors will be key drivers of solid year-long 2022 growth.
The Irish sponsorship industry grew by 6% to reach €180m in 2021 - the 16th annual ONSIDE Irish Sponsorship Industry Survey estimates there will be further growth of 8% in 2022 to €195m, a step closer to the €200m threshold first reached in 2018 @Onside_Spons
— Cat Hawkins (@ThinkSpons) January 10, 2022
