In professional sports, sponsorship represents a significant source of revenue and plays a vital role in the successful operation and growth of clubs and sports organisations, both at a local and international level. Within sports marketing, sponsorship is one of the crucial tools brands use to expand audience reach and gain new clientele, associating their name and image with popular and successful sports organisations or individual athletes.
Organisations of all sizes invest heavily in sports sponsorships to increase their brand exposure and association with a specific sport. The world of sports sponsorship is constantly evolving, and it is no surprise that many individuals are interested in understanding this dynamic field. It entails a strategic partnership between a brand and a football entity, wherein the brand offers financial or in-kind support in exchange for promotional benefits.
This in football essentially allows the sponsor to “borrow” the attention of the sports entities’ audiences and start building a rapport with them. This can be done in various short- or longer-term arrangements: by displaying a brand’s name and logo on a club’s or athlete’s sporting equipment, in different locations in a sporting competition venue, becoming an official supplier for a sporting event, buying media rights for a tournament broadcast, or naming rights for a stadium. This is no different to our local leagues, the Nigerian Professional Football League, NPFL, Nigeria Nation League, NNL and Nigeria League One, NLO.
In 2022, Bitnob announced that it had signed a multi-year partnership with the NPFL, managed by the League Management Company (LMC) as an Elite sponsor, making it the exclusive Fintech partner for the league.
Bernard Parah, the CEO of Bitnob said the partnership is a vehicle to reach the people who need their solutions in business and wealth creation and at the same time provide the company the opportunity to contribute to the development of the domestic league which is a national asset.
According to Parah, “This partnership takes us to the people that need our solutions and helps us work with the NPFL to develop our league for more possibilities. Bitcoin, just like football, is about hope, oneness, and freedom, and at Bitnob, we are excited to be making this happen to inspire hope and showcase possibilities in our league. If we don’t believe in what is ours, then who will,” he said.
Bitnob has established itself as a trailblazer and a company that sits at the cutting edge of leveraging Bitcoin to solve everyday problems. On her website, Bitnob says one of its core values is crazy, and that means they think limitlessly, break barriers, and does the impossible.
In 2023, MTN Nigeria announced that it had entered into a sponsorship agreement with the NPFL and its partners to broadcast NPFL matches live in the upcoming season.
The deal was facilitated by NPL, GTI Investment Ltd., and Propel Sports Africa and will see MTN granted exclusive rights to air over 300 games per season. The telecoms giant will broadcast 8 live matches each weekend on its streaming platform, delivering real-time highlights to subscribers.
Basil Kabbani, Chairman of Propel Sports Africa, expressed enthusiasm about the collaboration, stating: “From the very start of our negotiations, we knew MTN was the right partner to give our great content the platform it deserves,” he said.
The broadcast rights agreement was finalised between Propel Sports Africa president Edward Simons and MTN COO Hassan Jabar. Local sports development remains a key focus, with officials confident the accessibility of live matches will grow the reception and appreciation of Nigerian football nationwide. Same year, Star Times, announced that they and the league management body signed a whooping N1.06 billion five-year television broadcast sponsorship deal. The deal, which will stream and televise four Premier League matches live in the initial period, also has an N50 million incremental arrangement, and was signed in Abuja.
NPFL Chairman, Gbenga Elegbeleye, described the deal as a valuable addition to the Premier League family.
“We look forward to more exciting moments again for Nigerians who have endured years of absence of our league from television screens.
“The television sponsorship deal is worth N1.06 billion. It will come with an incremental figure of N50 million every season. I will end by promising that more valuable partners are in line to join our NPFL family as we continue on this trajectory of transparency, strict application of the rules, and appropriate sanctions for breaches. Good seasons are back in the NPFL,” he said.
This deal in particular gave the satellite TV a name in the country for people interested in watching the local leagues and other beyond.
Last year in October, NPFL table toppers, Rangers International Football Club of Enugu announced that it has gained new sponsorship, this time in its jersey with Afrinvest Limited, a financial firm. Head of Operations of the Interim Management Committee IMC of NPFL, Davidson Owumi stated this in Enugu at a ceremony to consummate the N50m deal in the first season.
He praised Governor Peter Mbah for “putting aside politics to give Rangers the platform to excel,” disclosing that the sponsorship would have been sealed six years ago, but some persons allegedly politicised it. Owumi, who was the former General Manager and player of the Flying Antelopes said that the NPFL is working assiduously to bring about financial autonomy for club sides in the country.
According to him, the league was already creating an enabling environment for clubs to thrive, adding that the agreement, which was entered into by Rangers, would serve as a springboard for other clubs.
“The essence is that we want to build an ecosystem where the clubs would have their own economic life and that will transmit into the Premier League itself. We are venturing into partnerships.
“If the 20 premiership clubs can get involved in things like this, then it makes it easier for the league to operate and bring it to the level it should. We are already creating the necessary environment for the clubs. Every match today is on Livestream. The partners have the opportunity to see their products around the world every week.
“The target is to take this as a springboard for other teams to understand that this is the way to go. This is the trajectory of our members’ modern vision for Nigerian football. We want teams to get involved in this new vision and new trajectory for Nigerian football,” he said.
However, while sports sponsorship shares similarities with advertising, it differs in that it does not aim to directly persuade customers to make purchases through specific product or company messages. Instead, sponsorship involves supporting a sport and the various components that a company’s customers value.
By investing in these areas, a company becomes associated with the sport over time, creating a positive brand image among fans, attendees, customers, and media. This ultimately creates financial gains for the company and reputation gains for players and teams.
–Benprince Ezeh
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