SPONSORING ESPORTS STRATEGIES: BRAND IMAGE AND ATTRACTION SPONSORS

Abstract

Purpose - The article analyses different sponsorship strategies of professional sports teams and sponsors from Germany and Spain. Since sport is still a young industry, companies are increasingly interested in it, especially since it is growing rapidly, both at the professional and spectator levels. Because very little research has been done so far, the article is based on interviews with experts from the professional sports industry. These people are the most knowledgeable about the industry and place a high value on the interviews conducted. The authors attempt to better understand the current situation of sponsorship within the industry. Design - This research follows the interpretivism approach with a qualitative method of collecting primary data. On this basis, an inductive approach was used, to investigate the interpretations of the people with whom the interview was conducted. The chosen research strategy consequently was based on expert interviews. Findings - The interviews it became clear that there is one main problem that all teams have to face and that still discourages companies to join the industry, a lack of trust and knowledge. A governing body or federation could possibly solve that problem. Nevertheless, there are other important results stated in this paper that could also lead to a better understanding of the industry and situation at hand. Value - The provision of theoretical evidence on possible new sponsorship strategies for electronic sports teams.