Sports Marketing Case Studies – Cricket
Every sport is rising but the rise of cricket is a bit more spectacular than any other sport. Cricket was limited to very few countries, before one decade. It was played mostly in England, Australia and Indian sub-continent. However, now it is played in most of the parts of the world. People of different countries, which were unfamiliar to the game of cricket are now showing great interest to play this gentleman’s game.
There are two three reasons, for which the game of cricket is witnessing the upsurge. First thing is, cricket is included in the Commonwealth Games. This is why more people get a chance to watch the game of sports. The Olympic Committee is thinking about including the cricket in the Olympic. If the cricket is included in Olympic, then this game is going to reach a new height. This is one of the reasons for why cricket is enjoying a new status.
The second reason and a more important reason is, money is now flowing into the game of cricket now and the sum of money flowing is uncountable. In fact, you can say money is now raining on cricket. It is coming from all possible sides. Not only the governments of test playing nations but governments of non-playing nations are promoting cricket in their nations by allocating more funds to build a cricketing infrastructure in their countries.
The major chunk of money for the cricket is coming from sports marketing and sports sponsorship. Advertisers are ready to pay any sum of money to promote their products and services during a cricket match. First of all they are sponsoring cricketing events by paying an astronomical amount of money. So, it is now really easy to host a cricket tournament. Then advertisers are paying for displaying their ads on the cricket ground during a cricket match. At the same time, they are booking the ad slots by paying huge money, when the cricket matches are getting broadcasted through TV or radio. This is why cricketing event organizers are selling the broadcasting right of the cricket matches at a heavy price.
This is not the end of the story. Parents are now encouraging their kids to take cricket up as a profession. This is because of the money associated with the cricket. As cricket associations are now earning handsomely, they are passing on the benefits to the cricket players as well. Professional cricketers are now getting more salary, than they ever were. At the same time, corporate houses are roping them in as brand ambassadors by paying much more money than their salaries. We can conclude that cricket is enjoying its golden era now and this era is not going to end any soon.
Mixed Martial Arts and the Reason for its Popularity
Mixed martial arts (or MMA) are an all-encompassing form of martial arts that are usually associated with competition. However, this style of fighting is not only for the cage (where the matches typically take place) but everyday life, as well. Mixed martial arts encompass all martial arts because any martial art can be inputted into the mixed martial arts matrix. This is the massive appeal of mixed martial arts because it encompasses all ranges and, therefore, has a solution for any range that the fight can go.
Mixed martial arts are commonly known as UFC fighting. However, this term is not correct. UFC refers to a certain sports league where people compete for a living. The UFC made it extremely popular to train in mixed martial arts. This is because most people who now watch martial arts are watching the UFC. This makes mixed martial arts are an immensely popular style to study. When people study this style they learn about stand-up fighting, clinch fighting, and ground fighting. These are all the ranges that a fight can happen in if both combatants are unarmed. It is a fantastic style for most people to learn. This is because there is no range (if both combatants are unarmed) that an opponent can go to that the practitioner of mixed martial arts does not have techniques.
The major styles within mixed martial arts are Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (or BJJ), boxing, wrestling, and Muay Thai. These are the principal arts that make up most of the techniques in mixed martial arts. This is not to say that someone could not add to this matrix, but these are the arts that mixed martial artists use in the cage when fighting. These are the most effective martial arts to use in each range. This is also why these martial arts styles are so popular with fighters.
A fighter skilled in mixed martial arts not only knows how to knock someone out but also how to submit to them. This was a crucial development in martial arts whereas before, a person would have only stand up fighting skills or ground fighting skills, but not both. The development of the sport of mixed martial arts showed that a fighter needs to have skills in all areas. This helped martial artists become extremely complete fighters instead of when they only trained in one style.
Mixed martial arts are a combat orientated martial art. However, it is also a sport. It has experienced a significant rise in popularity. This sport can usually be seen almost every weekend. This is because there many fights because of its popularity. A person well versed in mixed martial arts could possibly make money if they choose to compete. This is an exceptional style for anyone looking to defend him or herself because mixed martial arts borrows techniques from a wide range of other disciplines. Any person looking for a realistic martial art should look into mixed martial arts.
Sports Marketing – Marketing Your Athletes
The good old days when sports were tributes to gods are long gone. Now it has become a business that everybody seems to want to get their hands on. Even athletic skills are now being traded if the price is right. Now, is that a bad thing? Depends on how you look at it. In many western countries, athletes have become a commodity that can generate profit. Asia is following that trend; not too far behind.
A sports agent in Asia like Sports Marketing Hong Kong may have to work more than twice as hard as his Western counterpart when it comes to marketing athletes. The number one priority is to get your athlete noticed. How are you going to do that? By making sure your athlete performs at every single match, play or race. After all, nobody is going to notice a less than mediocre athlete, don’t you think? High-profiles athletes garner the attention of brand companies who are looking for a star to represent their brand. This is aptly called a sports sponsorship.
Of course, building a resume for your athlete is the next order of business. Consider the resume as a list of accomplishments. Whatever puts your athlete in the best light put it down in the resume. Anything that makes Garfield (of the orange cat variety) sounds like a winning athlete, leave it out. The idea is to get your athlete noticed by talent scouts.
Did you know that many talent scouts now scour the internet to look into the character of potential athletes? Well, now you do. This is why all brushing up of talent and skills is not going to help market your athlete if his character is out of sorts. Therefore, it is advisable that you make sure his Facebook and Twitter accounts do not be the cause of talent scouts to move on to the next potential talent.