Sponsoring as an Element of Sports Marketing

Sponsoring has developed into a significant and above-average growing segment in the communication sector in recent years. While the argumentation with product benefits and additional services often no longer provides sufficient differentiation from the competition, companies are increasingly looking for communication tools that enable experiential benefits and a specific target group approach. Both can be found in sponsoring, which is now often established as a fixed component in the communication mix. This chapter elaborates on the concept and characteristics of sponsoring as well as the development phases in science and practice. The focus is on the description of the structure of the sponsoring market and the importance of sponsoring rights. In addition to a detailed case study on the general sponsoring approach of Raiffeisen Switzerland, there is further practical information on sports sponsoring, including the so-called “shoe dispute” at the DFB.