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KFC could replace Busch as NASCAR sponsor - Memphis Business Journal:

KFC could replace Busch as NASCAR sponsor - Memphis Business Journal:: "KFC has emerged as one of the leading candidates to take over title sponsorship of the NASCAR Busch Series next season.

Memphis Motorsports Park hosts the annual Busch series race, Sam's Town 250.

Subway remains a factor as well, putting two quick-service restaurants in the mix despite a crowded category. Sources said that Dish Network could still emerge, but NASCAR's existing relationship with DirecTV, which is NASCAR's official satellite TV partner, would seem to make that a long shot. "

NASCAR.COM - Fantasy NASCAR proves popular with women fans - May 1, 2007

NASCAR.COM - Fantasy NASCAR proves popular with women fans - May 1, 2007: "The market of fantasy NASCAR players is much bigger and more female in composition than had been widely assumed in the industry.

More than 1.2 million people now play NASCAR fantasy games, according to research released April 27 by the Fantasy Sports Association. In what is being described as the first substantive, qualitative analysis of the fantasy NASCAR market, the research also shows the audience for the games as 33 percent female, far higher than the female audience for any other type of fantasy sports game."

IMG to Acquire Collegiate Licensing Company @ SYS-CON Media

http://www.sys-con.com/read/369068.htm: "IMG, the world's premier sports, entertainment and media company, today announced the acquisition of Collegiate Licensing Company (CLC), the largest collegiate trademark licensing agency in the United States. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

Atlanta-based CLC is a full-service licensing and marketing company that assists collegiate institutions with a wide array of licensing and administration services, helping to protect, develop and manage their brands in the $3 billion collegiate merchandise marketplace.

Under the agreement, CLC will operate as a freestanding unit within IMG's Sports and Entertainment Group, overseen by IMG Sports and Entertainment Group President, George Pyne. CLC founder and Chairman, Bill Battle, will continue to lead the company he founded, alongside Pat Battle, CLC's President and CEO. CLC will remain headquartered in Atlanta. "

Bugs Bunny joins Devil Rays at International Plaza - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

Bugs Bunny joins Devil Rays at International Plaza - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

Marketing News: '2012 Effect to boost all sports sponsorship' - MarketingWeek

Marketing News: '2012 Effect to boost all sports sponsorship' - MarketingWeek: "The London 2012 Olympics will generate brand interest in all sports sponsorship, according to leading figures in the sponsorship industry.

Industry insiders say that London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games (LOCOG) has been approaching the chief executives of multi-national corporations about getting involved in the games, as sports sponsorship is gaining recognition as a valuable marketing tool at board level.

One sponsorship director says/ '2012 has put sponsorship on the map for a lot of clients that weren't previously thinking about it.'

In a bid to widen the pool of possible partners and raise more than £700m in sponsorship, LOCOG has adopted a strategy of going straight to the top of corporations and is also targeting firms that would not normally consider sponsorship."

Newswire / Press Release: State Farm Receives Over $2 Million in Broadcast Media Value as Presenter of the NFL’s Pro Bowl - Broadcast/TV/Radio | NewswireToday

Newswire / Press Release: State Farm Receives Over $2 Million in Broadcast Media Value as Presenter of the NFL’s Pro Bowl - Broadcast/TV/Radio NewswireToday


NewswireToday - /newswire/ - Port Huron, MI, United States, 02/15/2007 - According to ROI analysis conducted by Front Row Marketing Services, a naming rights marketing and sponsorship research firm, State Farm received $2.06 million in exposure from its title sponsorship during the 2007 NFL Pro Bowl.

As the AFC stars defeated the NFC stars in dramatic fashion on a last-second field goal in the 57th Pro Bowl, State Farm also reaped the rewards as title sponsor of the NFL’s annual all-star game.According to ROI analysis conducted by Front Row Marketing Services, a naming rights marketing and sponsorship research firm and a subsidiary of Philadelphia-based sports and entertainment firm Comcast-Spectacor, State Farm received $2.06 million in exposure from its title sponsorship during the Pro Bowl’s Saturday evening broadcast on CBS. State Farm received 5 minutes and 42 seconds of in-broadcast exposure during the game from on-screen graphics and verbal mentions. The broadcast media value was determined by comparing the total amount of in-broadcast exposure with the estimated cost ($225,000) for a 30-second broadcast commercial spot.

LendingTree.com becomes marketing partner of PGA TOUR

The PGA TOUR and LendingTree.com have entered into a multi-year official marketing partnership whereby the nation's leading online lending exchange receives exclusive designation as the "Official Mortgage and Home Lending Partner of the PGA TOUR and Champions Tour."

This marks the first significant sports sponsorship for LendingTree.com, which plans to leverage the relationship through an integrated consumer promotion that offers PGA TOUR-related rewards to consumers. Beginning in March, those who start their loan request from a unique LendingTree/PGA TOUR web site may be eligible to receive PGA TOUR rewards after closing on a refinance, purchase mortgage or home equity loan.

"LendingTree is excited to be an official partner of the PGA TOUR," said Bob Harris, chief marketing officer, LendingTree.com. "The level of competition on the PGA TOUR and the passion of PGA TOUR fans is a great fit for LendingTree and our belief that 'When Banks Compete, You Win.'"

Getting Ready for Sports' Biggest Day

Roger Goodell is getting ready for his first Super Bowl as commissioner of the National Football League. The league is running ads during the big game this year to promote its NFL Network. But despite owning the cable network, Mr. Goodell told Advertising Age that the league isn't abandoning its broadcast TV partners: "We have a unique commitment to broadcast television with all of our games televised on free over-the-air TV. We are the only sports league that does that."

Milner: Super marketing deals up for grabs

If the favoured Indianapolis Colts prevail in the Super Bowl on Sunday, quarterback Peyton Manning will finally remove the stigma of never being able to win the big game. But regardless of what he accomplishes on the field in Miami, he will not reap the largest rewards off the field. That's because Manning is already a commercial superstar, with a high profile, a bankable image and a slew of impressive sponsorship deals unsurpassed in the National Football League.

Thanks to lucrative contracts with such major consumer marketers as Sony, Reebok, Sprint, DirecTV, MasterCard and PepsiCo's Gatorade brand, Manning raked in close to $12-million (all figures U.S.) last year, putting him first among NFL players and ninth among all athletes. New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, Manning's leading rival, ranked second among NFL players at $9-million in Sports Illustrated's annual tabulation.

The Business Of Basketball

There is an uprising going on in the National Basketball Association. Owners of small-market franchises are telling Commissioner David Stern that they can’t make money.

“Our current economic system (whereby local television revenue and gate receipts are not shared among the league’s 30 franchises) works only for larger-market teams and a few teams that have extraordinary success on the court,” says a letter sent by eight owners to Stern this fall. Owners from all of the league’s smallest markets, including Charlotte, N.C., Memphis, Milwaukee, Wis., and New Orleans, signed the letter.

There was one glaring absence: Peter Holt and the San Antonio Spurs--the best-run franchise in the NBA. Despite playing in the league’s third-smallest market, the Spurs are worth $390 million, 11% higher than last year and $37 million above the league average. Thanks to the team's on-court success and the first-rate AT&T Center, the Spurs turned an operating profit (in the sense of earnings before interest, taxes and depreciation) of $11.7 million, compared with $6.9 million for the average NBA franchise.

WhoWon.com ... The Internet Source for Motorsports News and Information

WhoWon.com ... The Internet Source for Motorsports News and Information:

"Rheem Manufacturing Company, a global manufacturer of quality heating, cooling, and water heating products, announced today its sponsorship of the Richard Childress Racing (RCR) No. 29 car for the 36-race NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series season. Rheem will be featured prominently on the lower rear quarter panels of RCR’s No. 29 car driven by Kevin Harvick, 2006 NASCAR Busch Series Champion and major Cup Series contender. Rheem becomes the major associate sponsor of the car, while Shell is the primary sponsor. The new Rheem-RCR relationship takes to the track for the NEXTEL Cup Series opener at the Daytona 500 on Feb. 18."