IPA reveals sports marketing formula

The findings offer brands, agencies and sports rights holders a framework for improving returns from sponsorship investments.

A report from the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) and the Sponsorship Effectiveness Forum (SEF) has identified three practices associated with effective sports sponsorship: setting clear commercial objectives, measuring business impact and integrating sponsorship with wider brand communications.

Titled All to play for: how three fundamentals can transform sports sponsorship effectiveness, the report draws on research involving 143 brands, agencies and, for the first time, sports rights holders. It was scheduled for unveiling on 7 October 2026 at the IPA Effectiveness Conference, as the global sports sponsorship market is projected to reach USD181.38 billion by 2034.

Sports sponsorship effectiveness remains a challenge

The research highlights an opportunity to strengthen confidence in sponsorship's commercial contribution. Four in ten practitioners are confident that sports sponsorship delivers business results, including sales, profit, market share and price elasticity. Confidence levels stand at 45 percent among brands, 41 percent among rights holders and 35 percent among agencies.

A further 29 percent of respondents describe themselves as somewhat confident. The findings suggest that improving confidence in commercial outcomes could help brands, agencies and rights holders capture greater value from sponsorship activity.

Three practices distinguish effective sponsorships

The study identifies three fundamentals associated with stronger sponsorship effectiveness: clear commercial objectives, measurement of commercial impact to inform renewal decisions, and integration with wider brand communications.

Practitioners confident in sponsorship's ability to deliver business results are more than twice as likely to have clear commercial objectives as less confident respondents, at 61 percent compared with 24 percent. They are also four times more likely to rate their measurement capabilities as strong, at 48 percent versus 12 percent.

The differences extend to measurement methods and campaign integration. Confident practitioners are nearly three times as likely to use econometrics or marketing mix modelling, at 37 percent compared with 13 percent. They are also almost twice as likely to report that sponsorship activity is mostly or fully integrated with wider brand communications, at 55 percent versus 30 percent.

Consistent implementation linked to greater confidence

Organisations that consistently apply all three fundamentals are almost six times more likely to express confidence that their sponsorships deliver business results. However, only 17 percent of respondents say they consistently implement all three practices.

The findings point to an opportunity for organisations to improve sponsorship outcomes through more disciplined planning, evaluation and integration, rather than relying solely on larger budgets.

Sponsorship measurement gap limits evaluation

Although 82 percent of respondents set commercial objectives for sponsorship activity, fewer than half, at 47 percent, use measurement tools capable of assessing whether those objectives have been achieved.

The research also identifies limitations in how organisations use effectiveness data. While 70 percent use it for post-campaign reporting, only 39 percent apply it when setting objectives and 22 percent use it to optimise activity while programmes are running.

Industry-wide measurement standards and a common currency could help address these challenges. Some 43 percent of respondents identified these as the changes that would make the greatest positive difference to sponsorship effectiveness, indicating demand for more consistent evaluation methods.

Sponsorship Effectiveness Model maps six stages

The report introduces the Sponsorship Effectiveness Model, a six-stage framework designed to help organisations assess and improve their sponsorship activity. Its stages are Inventory Buy, Rights Activation, Creative Platform, Distinctive Asset, Category Advantage and Brand Narrative.

The research identifies Creative Platform, the third stage, as a point where effectiveness indicators improve significantly. At this stage, sponsorship develops beyond rights activation and centres on a consistent creative idea.

From Stage 3 onwards, confidence in business results rises from 28 percent to 47 percent. The proportion of sponsorships with clear commercial objectives increases from 21 percent to 55 percent, while integration with wider communications rises from 19 percent to 58 percent.

Industry leaders highlight commercial opportunity

Rory Natkiel, Founding Chair of the Sponsorship Effectiveness Forum and Founder, Box Count: "Sports sponsorship has a huge opportunity to strengthen confidence in its effectiveness and unlock even greater commercial value. What's encouraging is that success doesn't depend on bigger budgets. This research shows that the organisations achieving the strongest results are those applying a few core disciplines consistently. That gives brands, agencies and rights holders a practical roadmap to maximise the value of sports sponsorship. It really is all to play for."

Laurence Green, Director of Effectiveness, IPA: "The IPA is committed to advancing effectiveness across every part of the marketing and communications industry, and sports sponsorship is no exception. Despite its remarkable growth, sponsorship remains underrepresented in the wider effectiveness evidence base. This research helps address that gap, bringing greater rigour and insight to a discipline that plays an increasingly important role in the marketing mix.”

Claire Humphris, CMO, British Cycling: “The Sponsorship Effectiveness Model is intuitive and easy enough to understand that anybody working in sponsorship can use it. We can all recognise the stage at which the sponsorships we work on sit, where we would aspire for them to be, and what it would take to achieve that. We all hear about integration being important in theory, this model shows us what it looks like in practice.”

The full report can be accessed here

www.ipa.co.uk

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