Irish sponsorship market to break €200 million

The Irish sponsorship industry is expected to grow to exceed €200 million in 2023, according to a new survey.

THE Irish sponsorship industry grew by 9% to reach €196 million in 2022 and the 17th annual Onside Irish Sponsorship Industry Survey estimates there will be further growth of 8% in 2023 to €212 million, surpassing the €200 million threshold first reached in 2018.

53% of sponsors intend to increase their sponsorship investment levels in 2023, broadly in line with 2022 expectations, and seven in 10 expect sponsorship spending across the wider industry to increase, compared to only one in five back in 2021.

“Despite strong concerns amongst three in 10 sponsorship industry practitioners that feel that the cost-of-living crisis will have a significant negative impact on the sports industry in Ireland, we know brands that maintain their investment in sponsorship during tough times reap the rewards in the long-run,” noted John Trainor, Founder and CEO of Onside. “While the instinct may be to cut back on sponsorship and activation, astute CMO’s and marketers will dive into the right data, adapt their approach, and ensure their CEO and CFO colleagues are well-informed of the real return-on-investment they are delivering.”

Competition for sponsorship assets

Trainor believes that there will still be “significant competition” for available sponsorship assets in 2023, predicting that “demand for premium properties will continue to outstrip supply”, although this has softened slightly compared to last year. “Six in 10 sponsors will be looking for new properties in 2023, a drop of 7% on last year, and 47% are looking to drop out of existing partnerships, up 12% year-onyear,” he revealed.

The Onside Irish Sponsorship Industry Survey 2023 is a survey of key industry stakeholders in the Irish sponsorship market. The respected barometer, conducted annually since 2005, gathers insights on the state of the sponsorship industry in Ireland, tracking sponsor and rights holder spend, investment, strategy and opinion.

Strongest sponsorship growth opportunities in 2023 are expected to be in the broad areas of sustainability / environment, cause, community, and diversity & inclusion, while banking and airline brands are tipped by the survey respondents as sectors to watch for growth this year.

Müller Corner Waltzes back onto TV screens

MÜLLER Corner has returned as the sponsor of RTÉ’s Dancing with the Stars, the country’s most popular dance-off show, and is supporting it with a significant promotional campaign to help drive consumer demand in store of Müller Corner Irish Favourites. Special promotional packs are on shelves now and include a ‘Text to Win’ Competition to be in with a chance of winning a pair of tickets to attend a live Dancing with the Stars show and overnight hotel stay.

The multipack includes Müller’s best-ever Müller Corner recipe, which contains more protein and has a thicker and creamier texture and consumers can enjoy Ireland’s favourite flavours: Strawberry, Vanilla Chocolate Balls, and Milk Chocolate Digestives.

“Dancing With The Stars is always such a joyful show to watch, and we are very excited to be proud partners again this year,” noted Sean Cleary, Head of Müller Ireland. “With such a great cast, audience and dances each week that keep us on our toes, the show perfectly aligns with our brand purpose, which is to inspire happy and healthy lifestyles.”

The show, which runs until March 2023, features a new hosting duo of Jennifer Zamparelli and Doireann Garrihy, along with famous faces such as Suzanne Jackson, Carl Mullen, Panti Bliss and Shane Byrne taking to the dancefloor this year.

Sports sponsorships vital

With Rugby World Cup 2023 on the horizon, the survey perhaps unsurprisingly found rugby as the top sport offering opportunities for sponsors to invest in this year, while soccer made a notable return to the Top 10 areas of opportunity. Seven in 10 sponsors say their businesses see the Rugby World Cup in France as an opportunity to engage with consumers, while 43% see opportunity for their businesses around the Republic of Ireland team’s presence at the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 in Australia and New Zealand.

Female stars in sports and entertainment continue to dominate the list of most marketable personalities for 2023, with the top four being females. 68% of industry professionals mentioned a female star, with Katie Taylor sharing the top spot with Ireland soccer team captain Katie McCabe, as the soccer star jumped up the rankings from 13th place last year. The success of the Women’s National Football Team in qualifying for the FIFA Women’s World Cup also saw coach Vera Pauw and players Amber Barrett and Niamh Fahey all making the most marketable list.

John Trainor, Founder and CEO of Onside.

Reflecting on the improving standard of activity produced by the collective Irish sponsorship industry last year, one in three industry professionals believe sponsorship campaigns in Ireland were more effective in 2022 than 2021, which is up 5% year-on-year. According to the industry professionals surveyed, Sky Ireland’s partnership with the FAI’s Women’s Team was most worthy of recognition, while Lidl and AIG’s ties with Gaelic games stood alongside Vodafone and Bank of Ireland’s rugby partnerships as perceived best-in-class of ‘22. KPMG’s new partnership with the Women’s Irish Open Golf was also a notable new entry to this year’s list.

Sport also dominates the survey list of the most effective rights holder partners in the eyes of sponsors, with the IRFU leading the line, alongside the GAA, the FAI, and Aviva Stadium. They are joined on that list this year by Live Nation, who managed the full re-opening of a wide portfolio of venue and outdoor festival partnership properties in 2022.

Video sharing platforms are expected to be the big risers among activation channels in 2023, comfortably sitting in top spot, with 76% of sponsors expecting to use more of these platforms to leverage sponsorship programmes in the coming year, an increase of 22% from last year.

Public approval an important factor

Meanwhile, recent public research produced by Onside in parallel to the industry survey found that two thirds of the Irish public believed that sponsors of the 2022 FIFA World Cup would be right to turn down or off their sponsorship of the tournament due to concerns over Qatar’s human rights record and stance on the LGBTQ+ community.

“As controversy and resultant public opinion and backlash around sponsorships linked to Russian and Qatar-based events remained a consistent theme throughout 2022, it is no surprise that eight in 10 rights holders in Ireland agreed that public opinion impacts the brands they will consider partnering with in 2023,” concluded John Trainor. “The importance of public approval for sponsorships has increased significantly in the last 12 months, highlighting the tightrope that sponsors and rights holders will walk when developing partnerships in the year ahead.”

Kepak renews

sponsorship with Meath Ladies GFA

KEPAK Group recently announced a significant three-year renewal of their hugely successful sponsorship of the history-making Meath Ladies Gaelic Football Association.

Kepak Group began their partnership with the Meath Ladies Gaelic Football Association in 2020 and the last three years have coincided with unrivalled success for Meath LGFA on the field. In 2020, Meath Ladies rose to prominence as All-Ireland Intermediate champions, followed by back-to-back glory in 2021 and 2022 when they claimed their first and second Senior All-Ireland titles. Since the partnership with Meath and Kepak began in 2020 there has been an increase in clubs now registered within the county, while the number of players in Ladies Football has doubled.

Kepak’s partnership with Meath LGFA underscores the Cloneeheadquartered food company’s continued commitment to supporting local communities and diversity and inclusion. Kepak have a strong history of supporting Gaelic games in Meath; the company and county previously enjoyed one of the longest and most successful relationships in Gaelic football, featuring a 15-year sponsorship of the men’s team.

“Kepak are delighted to continue our partnership with Meath LGFA for the next three years,” said Mick O’Dowd, Head of Agri-Business, Kepak. “Being able to play a supporting role at such a groundbreaking time in Meath Ladies Gaelic Football is a huge honour for Kepak.”

All-Ireland winning Meath Senior LGFA players with Kepak AgriBusiness Development Manager, Mick O’Dowd, Meath Senior LGFA Manager, Davy Nelson, and Meath LGFA Chairperson, Colm McManus, at the launch of Kepak’s renewed three-year sponsorship of the team.

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