The global sports industry is now worth hundreds of billions of dollars and sports marketing is one of its most powerful growth engines.
Every decision, from ticketing campaigns to sponsorship activations to digital fan experiences, is now tied to measurable business outcomes. And as media habits fragment and fan expectations rise, the margin for error continues to shrink.
Today, sports marketers are no longer judged on creativity alone. You are expected to fill stadiums, drive merchandise sales, secure powerful partnerships and adapt to constant change all at the same time.
Everything moves so fast and you have to keep up or risk your sports brand becoming invisible.
That constant adaptation is exactly what we address in this sports marketing playbook.
In this guide, you’ll learn everything you need to know to stay at the top of your game in your sports marketing career, regardless of what changes in the industry and what happens on the field.
Sports marketing is a field of marketing that’s based on two styles: marketing of sports and marketing through sports. Both connect brands with fans and clients through strategic campaigns, sponsorships, partnerships and engaging activations to drive fan engagement and measurable revenue.
The core pillars of sports marketing are brand storytelling, fan engagement, sponsorships, activation management, content production, analytics and season-long consistency work together to create effective strategies.
The types of sports marketing you can do are sponsorship and partnership marketing, event marketing, digital marketing, content marketing and broadcast advertising; each serving different goals across the sports ecosystem.
Sports marketing strategies that work include stadium experiences, omnichannel campaigns, off-season engagement, AR/VR activations and purpose-driven initiatives that give back to communities.
AI in sports marketing shows up through personalized fan engagement, automated content creation, predictive analytics and smart stadium technology.
What is an example of sports marketing? Nike's LeBron 23 "Forever King" campaign features 23 unique sneaker colorways and storytelling that celebrates his career while driving product sales.
Some of the best sports marketing campaigns include IBM and Wimbledon's AI-powered Match Chat, Adidas' "You Got This" supporting grassroots athletes and ESPN's "Sports Forever" streaming launch.
Sports marketing is a field of marketing that connects sports and non-sports brands with sports fans and clients.
To truly understand sports marketing in all its glory, we must define its two main categories: Marketing of sport and marketing through sport.
Marketing of sport applies traditional marketing principles and techniques to promote the sports product directly to consumers. Some examples include selling tickets to a game or event, promoting licensed team apparel and running an ad campaign.
Marketing through sport uses sports as a platform or promotional tool to market non-sports products and services. For example, a beverage company might sponsor a major sports league, a car manufacturer might advertise during a game broadcast or an athlete might endorse a non-sport product like breakfast cereal.
The Goal of Sports Marketing
What is the purpose of sports marketing?
At its core, the goal of sports marketing is to leverage the emotional connection between fans and their teams to drive awareness, engagement and, of course, revenue.
The goal in marketing of sport is for teams and leagues to increase ticket sales and merchandise revenue, get stronger broadcast ratings and keep renewing sponsorship deals at premium rates.
When it comes to marketing through sport, the goal is for brands partnering with sports to access highly engaged audiences, build brand affinity and drive purchase intent among sports fans.
Aside from the results-based aspect of sports marketing, professionals in the industry also have personal goals: to be better, to aim higher.
Youssef Morsy, a sports specialist, believes in the magic of doing the work itself:
“One of the biggest perks [in sports marketing] is the environment. From matchdays and events to content shoots and partnerships, no two days look the same. You’re constantly learning, adapting and pushing to stay relevant in an industry that never slows down.”
Sports Marketing vs. Sports Management
Sports marketing and sports management are sometimes confused with each other, but they’re actually two distinct disciplines.
As we’ve already seen, sports marketing focuses on the commercial and promotional aspects of sports.
Sports management, on the other hand, is about the broader operational aspect of running a sports organization, including facility management, team operations, athlete contracts and business administration. A sports manager focuses on the day-to-day functioning of teams, leagues and venues.
There are seven core pillars that work together as an effective sports marketing mix. None of these are siloed functions; they all depend on one or more of the other functions to be truly effective.
Brand storytelling in sports is about crafting narratives that resonate with fans, fostering deeper connections and loyalty to a team or individual athlete. It also sets the tone for how your sports brand communicates through marketing strategies.
When these strategies involve sponsorships, partnerships or endorsements, then the band stories of all the involved parties must align in some way for the relationship to make an impact.
Take, for example, Netflix's "Drive to Survive" series. The producers took the energy and excitement of Formula racing and added high-stakes human drama. This storytelling strategy significantly expanded the sport's global fanbase and increased revenue for both parties, proving the power of authentic narrative.
These are the ways in which brand storytelling supports your sports marketing efforts:
It reinforces the humanity of athletes and teams, making your sports brand relatable and approachable.
Brand storytelling helps build strong emotional connections, evoking feelings that create lasting memories for both fans and athletes.
It helps your brand stand out by differentiating it from others through a unique story and narrative.
A brand story drives engagement by encouraging fans to interact and participate.
2. Fan Engagement
An engagement is one of the non-avoidable sports marketing essentials. Fandoms are an extremely important piece of the puzzle because, without them, who are you marketing to?
We can define fan engagement in three categories: physical, transactional and digital.
Physical fan engagement
Fans attend games in stadiums and cheer for their favorite team. Many fans travel to away games when they’re important, like semi-finals or championship finals. They wear their team’s jersey, paint their faces with the team colors and live the experience to the max.
Aside from attending games, fans can also take part in sponsorship activations, book stadium tours, meet and greets with players, attend conferences or activations with their favorite players.
Transactional engagement
Fandoms spend money on their teams and players. This is a big part of their engagement. They buy apparel, memorabilia and, of course, tickets to games. According to a study by Ally Bank, sports fans spend an average of $1,600 per year to support their teams, while "fanatical" fans spend nearly $2,200 annually.
This is what they spend their money on:
Tickets (60%)
Food & drink (54%)
Apparel (47%)
Travel (36%)
Fans spend their money on sports entertainment, merchandise and experiences because they believe in their teams and feel like sports are a big part of their lives.
Like Lindsay Sacknoff, head of consumer banking at Ally, remarks, "It's clear that fandom transcends mere dollars and cents: it's about identity, community and being part of something bigger. You can't put a price tag on that."
Digital engagement
The third type of fan engagement is digital. This begins with fandoms following teams' and individual athletes' social media accounts, commenting and sharing with their friends.
In IBM’s 2025 Sports Survey, researchers found that 90% of fans consume sports content beyond watching events, with younger fans particularly hungry for behind-the-scenes access and non-game-day content.
And thanks to AI, digital engagement is only growing and becoming more important every year. When sports marketers use AI to drive fan engagement, interaction can increase by 35-50%.
3. Sponsorships | Parnerships & Endorsements
Sponsorship is the main element in this pillar. But under its umbrella, there are also partnerships and endorsements.
All three are types of relationships that athletes, teams and leagues can have with brands and companies that wish to support them.
Partnerships require active participation from both parties, with shared responsibilities and decision-making for activations and campaigns. Both entities work together to create value, often co-developing content, experiences or products.
Sponsorships are usually more hands-off, with the sponsor's role primarily focused on providing funding or resources in exchange for brand visibility and association. The sports brand then delivers the agreed-upon sponsorship opportunities and assets, such as logo placements, signage or season tickets.
Endorsements typically involve athletes promoting a brand's products or services individually. This typically happens through personal appearances, social media content or advertising campaigns. The athlete lends their credibility and influence to the brand in exchange for compensation.
These relationships represent the single largest revenue stream in sports marketing. Research and Markets forecasts that the global sports sponsorship market will reach $189.5 billion by 2030, growing at 8.73% year over year.
As this pillar becomes more influential, the value of data increases.
Research shows that 81% of consumers trust sponsorships to help them make sports-related decisions like buying game tickets or apparel.
That’s why sponsors need access to first-party fan data, activation rights and clear attribution. They’ll increasingly demand that the sports brands they work with offer measurable ROI through digital tracking and engagement metrics.
Furthermore, athlete endorsement has grown exponentially through Name, Image and Likeness (NIL). For example, SponsorUnited research shares that the NIL economy has grown into a $1B+ market in just four years, with basketball players—especially women—leading in brand partnerships and technology brands seeing 29% growth.
4. Activation Management
Activations is where sponsorship deals come to life through different types of events where fans can participate. The actual practice is called Activation management and is a subset of partnership and sponsorship marketing. The activation managers plan, execute and measure for ROI and impact.
The purpose of sponsorship activations is to design and enable unforgettable experiences that benefit both the sponsor and the fans. Activations can be experiential, in-person or digital, in stadiums, malls, schools, public spaces and more. The best ones create unforgettable moments that enhance the fan experience while also delivering sponsor objectives.
For example:
AT&T Dribble Town at NBA All-Star 2024: AT&T created a gaming experience where fans dribbled real basketballs to control digital avatars. Fans got interactive entertainment and highlight reels while AT&T gained tons of engagement data from thousands of participants.
Puma x Cheetos Bag Experience Puma and Cheetos built a life-sized Cheetos bag maze with free snacks and merchandise. Fans got Instagram-worthy experiences and freebies. The brands got social media buzz for their sneaker collaboration.
The most successful activation marketing strategies are year-round disciplines rather than game-day afterthoughts. Dedicated teams build activation calendars that extend across pre-season, regular season, playoffs and offseason, creating touchpoints that keep sponsors visible and engaged throughout the entire partnership.
As the activation industry keeps changing, digital experiences are growing rapidly due to their measurable ROI and engagement capabilities, with 25% of sponsors adopting advanced analytics systems to track activation effectiveness.
5. Creative Content Production & Workflow
Every aspect of marketing in the sports world requires content creation, ranging from event banners to social media and more.
Videos, in particular, are the highest performers in sports marketing. According to data from Datareportal, 92% of internet users watch video content weekly, with 24.8% of those people watching sports clips or highlights.
The demand for sports content is relentless and sports brands are expected to create fresh, engaging material across multiple platforms. That’s why sports organizations need teams with tools that can produce game-day graphics, player spotlights, sponsor activations, behind-the-scenes footage and real-time social media content—often simultaneously.
Visme, for example, is a great option for a sports marketing team to have in their content tech stack.
Further on in this guide, I’ll share how you can use Visme to create content for your sports marketing on social media and everywhere else.
6. Analytics & Reporting
Analytics and reporting are essential to the infrastructure of sports marketing strategies. Not only do they prove the ROI of your efforts, but they also drive decision-making at every step of the process.
First, to improve your sports marketing strategies over time, you need to measure their impact and iterate based on the results. And to have your stakeholders, partners and higher-ups back your ideas, you need to report to them regularly, using clear data visualizations and storytelling techniques.
The data backs it all up. The sports analytics market is currently valued at $4.47-4.80 billion and projected to reach up to $24 billion by 2032. Likewise, real-time analytics have become standard; over 75% of professional sports teams use real-time analytics during games to gain a competitive advantage.
On the business side, 25% of surveyed sponsors have already adopted advanced analytics to accurately measure sponsorship ROI.
7. Season-Long Consistency & Governance
Sports marketing is most active during a sports brand's game season. For instance, the NFL has one season a year and the FIFA World Cup is every four years. During these times, marketing strategies are at their peak, spanning all pillars to maximize engagement and revenue.
But for your sports marketing efforts during the season to be successful, you need consistency and clear governance.
Consistency means fans experience the same quality, messaging and brand identity whether they interact with your team at the start of the season or during the championship finals. Every social media post, stadium experience, email campaign and sponsor activation must feel connected to the same overarching story and strategy. For example:
Your visual identity remains cohesive across all platforms; fans instantly recognize your content whether it appears on Instagram, the jumbotron or merchandise packaging.
The brand voice stays consistent in wins and losses, maintaining authenticity rather than shifting tone based on team performance.
Sponsor commitments get delivered reliably throughout the season, not only during high-profile games.
Fan communication follows predictable patterns, so audiences know when to expect content, ticket sales or special announcements.
Types of Sports Marketing
When talking about both the marketing of sports or through sports, several marketing types apply.
Marketing agencies of different sizes offer these services in different combinations. For example, there are agencies that do only sponsorship marketing and others that do only event marketing. Likewise, larger agencies might offer all options either individually or as package deals.
Beyond agencies, there are also plenty of professional marketers who work on their own to offer these services to small local teams and athletes at the start of their careers.
Let’s discuss each one.
Sponsorship, Partnership & Endorsement Marketing
This aspect of sports marketing is both a pillar and a type. We already looked at the differences between sponsorship, partnership and endorsement. Now we’ll discuss how they’re approached in a marketing sense.
Since sponsorship marketing is such a big business, there are tons of dedicated providers and partners to help sports brands reach sponsorship goals. These range from big-name agencies to individual agents for local pro teams and representatives for grassroots clubs.
This is how sponsorship, partnership and endorsement marketing works:
Goal setting and strategizing to figure out the best sponsors and sponsorship packages for the teams and athletes in your roster.
Identification of good potential sponsors and acquisition through clear, data-backed communication.
Negotiation and contracting to close deals that benefit both sponsor and sports brand.
Activation and execution of events, pop-ups, experiences, conferences and lots more.
Relationship management that keeps close tabs on all activations, activities and communication between sponsors and sports brands.
Monitoring and measurement using analytics and social listening tools for calculating ROI, impact and sentiment.
Optimization and iteration after analyzing data and impact from every aspect and touchpoint of the sponsorship agreement.
Here’s a current example of a sponsorship relation. It's an Instagram post featuring Simone Biles endorsing Athleta, an athleisure brand.
Event marketing is one of the largest subsets of sports marketing because it touches many areas under the main umbrella.
Sports marketing events can be any of the following:
Pre-game parties in sports bars, outside the stadium or community centers.
Post-game celebrations on the streets, in clubs or restaurants.
Sponsor activations like donation drives, kit signings or photo opportunities.
Fan-directed or sports marketing conferences where athletes or coaches talk with hosts or hand out merch.
Meet-and-greets for kids to meet their sports heroes or school visits.
Medal ceremonies at the end of a championship or league.
Digital webinars where athletes ask fan questions like AMAs
Podcast appearances that are video recorded or even transmitted live on a streaming platform
Food and donation drives where athletes visit underserved communities and help out.
The image below is from a Nike Running activation with the Chicago Marathon. They set up a bunch of billboards along the race with inspiring messages for the runners taking part.
Digital marketing encompasses all marketing activities conducted online or via digital devices. It’s one of the primary channels for fan engagement, with streaming platforms capturing 46% of all TV viewing time as of 2025.
According to Nielsen’s Future of Sport Report, 54% of young adult sports fans follow their favorite athletes on social media. And the Interactive Advertising Bureau found that as of 2025, digital platforms captured 58% of video advertising dollars compared to traditional TV's 42%.
The scope of digital marketing in sports includes:
Social media marketing, like how FC Barcelona uses TikTok to share exclusive team practice footage, locker room celebrations and warm-up routines.
Streaming and CTV advertising that plays as videos during pre-game, halftime shows or post-game, or as scrolling banners at the top and bottom of the screen during the game or as small clips in the corners of the screen.
Mobile apps and digital platforms like Bleacher Report, where fans can get up-to-date scores and stats or the Manchester United live match chats.
Personalized email marketing to send fans content recommendations, exclusive ticket offers or merchandise promotions.
Paid digital advertising like Meta, Google and YouTube ads.
The TikTok below shows the Barça team flying to Saudi Arabia for a match. In the video, the team adds a greeting to the Culers, their fans.
Content marketing in sports is all about creating valuable, engaging content that keeps fans connected year-round. Did you know that during the off-season, 95% of fans still interact with their teams? This creates a huge opportunity for content marketing across many different styles.
“Short-form content is now a primary way that many fans engage with sports and right holders must tap into its media and sponsorship value. It’s no longer just a teaser for live games; it’s becoming a main event. Fans rely on this content to follow and support their teams.”
Aside from short-form videos, here are some content marketing plays that work well:
Online articles with play-by-play or highlight content that updates every few minutes
Behind-the-scenes and non-live content like Formula 1’s TikTok channel, which shares meme-based content, team interviews and pit crew challenges.
Interactive and gamified content, such as NASCAR Fan Rewards, where fans sign up to collect points during the season and win prizes.
Fan-generated content campaigns, like when This Girl Can shares a new video and prompts women to share their own stories with the #thisgirlcan hashtag.
They prompt women with this invitation: “We’re inviting women everywhere to change the picture of what getting active looks like – by sharing your own ways of moving on social media using #ThisGirlCan and tagging us.
Whether it’s a stretch in the living room, a kickabout in the park or a swim with friends, every woman’s story helps show that there’s no one way to be active.”
Below is an example of just one post from over 2 million that use the #thisgirlcan hashtag. This campaign is proof that brand hashtags are still relevant in marketing, including sports marketing.
Broadcasting is the original form of sports marketing, but it has changed over time. More people now watch sports on live streaming services rather than on broadcast TV. According to AI Digital, in July 2023, streaming surpassed cable for the first time in U.S. viewing share, accounting for 38.7% of TV usage. By June 2025, streaming's share grew to 46%.
That said, the advertising spots during live NFL games are still the most valuable real state for sports marketing. Meaning that even though it’s changed, traditional broadcasting is still important.
A lot of the Super Bowl ads fit into the Marketing Through Sports category because they’re brands that aren’t inherently sport-related. But sometimes, the ads are directly sports-related, like Nike’s “So Win” commercial.
Sports Marketing Strategies: What Actually Works in 2026
What worked in sports marketing ten or even five years ago, isn’t the same as what works today in 2016 (except for the commercials during the Super Bowl).
For starters, AI has profoundly changed how fans interact with their teams during the season and in the off-season. More tech, more data, and a growing presence of younger fans are making sports marketers think bigger and further outside the box.
Let’s take a look at some sports marketing strategies I consider the best performers.
The Stadium Experience/Tour
What used to be called stadium tours has grown into what marketers now call the stadium experience. Many stadiums, especially the big and famous ones, offer activities to fans both during and off-season.
Typically, most stadiums are home to a specific team. And depending on the type of stadium, the experiences will differ. For instance, at the Camp Nou stadium in Barcelona, fans can book a tour of the newly refurbished stadium plus a VR experience called the Barça Virtual Dream.
At Fenway Park, fans can book tours of different types and for different interests. Likewise, they can book experiences such as learning about Fenway Park's history or trying on player uniforms.
Finally, Wembley Stadium offers several types of memberships for fans to experience match day however they like, from just next to the players to a fancy restaurant with a great view of the field.
Furthermore, the Stadium Experience also applies to how fans feel about the stadium, from queueing at the entrance to finding their seats and watching the match. The biggest, most-liked stadiums have strong WiFi,food ordering options, easy merch shopping, short lines to clean bathrooms and more.
For 2026 and beyond, the stadiums with the best-rated fan experiences will be those that analyze what’s working, what isn’t and what can be improved. Using human-first analysis and research, stadium experience marketers can improve not only how staff communicate but also how services are offered inside the stadium.
Omnichannel Marketing Strategies
Omnichannel marketing is about creating a seamless experience across every touchpoint where fans interact with your sports brand. When done right, a fan’s journey flows naturally from social media to the stadium to the app to the merchandise shop, with each channel reinforcing the others.
According to Deloitte's research on immersive sports fandom, fans who engage across multiple channels spend significantly more and demonstrate higher loyalty than single-channel fans. Likewise, SportsPro's analysis shows that mobile devices serve as the central hub connecting experiences, creating a continuous feedback loop for fan monetization and data collection.
Here's what omnichannel sports marketing can look like in practice:
Digital and physical interactions create immersive fandom. For example, fans discover an activation through Instagram, register via an app, attend the event, share content on TikTok and then receive follow-up emails with exclusive offers. Marketers track everything through unified CRM systems that help personalize every touchpoint.
Community-centered platforms extend your brand into the spaces where fans naturally congregate. Lots of sports teams have established presences on Reddit, Discord and dedicated forums. This is where fans connect with each other for real-time game-day chat and deep discussions. The key practice in this area is to build genuine participation instead of posting promotional material.
Social media for content distribution. Short-form video dominates engagement on channels like TikTok, Instagram and YouTube Shorts. Plus, Nielsen reports that 54% of young adult sports fans follow their favorite athletes on social media.
Off-Season Fan Engagement
Sports marketing during the season is a given, as it applies to all strategies on this list. But one other strategy that should also form part of your team’s work is off-season fan engagement.
During the off-season, players train and rest. But that doesn’t mean your marketing efforts should stop. There’s no reason to stop everything until the pre-season; it’s best to be active throughout the entire year.
Deloitte's research reveals several factors that support the importance of off-season marketing, making it a critical period for audience growth:
95% of fans interact with their favorite team or league during the off-season.
65% want content or information at least monthly.
Fans who engage even once monthly in the off-season spend 40% more than fans with no off-season engagement.
Also, WSC Sports found that 55% of fans discover teams and players through short-form video during pre-season,
Here are some ideas for maintaining year-round fan engagement:
Create episodic content series. IBM research shows 90% of sports fans consume content outside of game days. So, consider making a documentary that shares the story of your club, league or team. Leverage social media to publish player interviews, training diaries, behind-the-scenes content and game highlights from previous seasons.
Launch digital competitions. NASCAR's off-season prediction games and fantasy leagues keep their community active during racing's winter break. Use their example and create trivia contests, bracket challenges and other interactive experiences.
Amplify athletes' personal brands. Share content from your athletes’ social media channels. Empower and inspire players to post lifestyle videos for fans. Close sponsorship deals with brands so that content never dries out.
Run targeted acquisition campaigns. Lower competition for attention makes customer acquisition more cost-effective during the off-season. Use this window to grow your database and convert casual observers before seasonal demand drives up costs. Use Visme’s ad templates to create personalized graphics for your campaigns.
Sports Seasonal Marketing Cycle
The strategy above was about the off-season. But how do you stay active throughout the entire year? The seasonal marketing cycle will help.
Pre-season (anticipation phase). Build excitement through roster announcements, training camp content, prediction games and ticket/merchandise promotions. Prepare season-long engagement strategies and use targeted ads to convert casual interest into committed fandom before competition begins.
In-season (engagement phase). Maximize real-time interaction through live content, game-day activations, fantasy competitions and social amplification. Capture attention when it's naturally focused on your sport and convert engagement into transactions.
Post-season (celebration/reflection phase). Share continuous championship narratives, celebrate achievements, analyze season performance and maintain momentum through awards content and retrospectives. At this point, you can bridge the gap to off-season with storytelling-based content.
Off-season (relationship phase). Deepen connections through behind-the-scenes content, player features, community initiatives and digital experiences that help humanize your brand or your athletes. Use lower-competition environments to gain attention, grow databases and test new strategies cost-effectively.
Augmented and Virtual Reality Experiences for Fans
Augmented and virtual reality aren’t novel marketing techniques anymore; they have been actively influencing the marketing and advertising world, including sports marketing.
Let’s start with the data from Fortune Business Insights. According to their research, the global AR market is projected to grow from USD 140.34 billion in 2025 to USD 1,716.37 billion by 2032. Similarly, the VR market is forecast to grow from USD 20.83 billion in 2025 to USD 123.06 billion by 2032.
As you can tell, these are no longer trends and very much are and will be important in sports marketing. If your sports marketing strategies don’t include AR or VR, it’s time to consider incorporating them.
There are several angles you can explore with VR and AR Here are some examples of real campaigns:
Sony and ATP Media launched their strategic partnership at the 2025 Nitto ATP Finals in Turin, Italy, featuring Hawk-Eye's HawkAR product; augmented reality graphics overlays that enhance the broadcast experience through data-driven storytelling powered by live tracking systems. The technology displays real-time player statistics, ball trajectories and tactical analysis directly integrated into the broadcast feed.
For BBC Sport's coverage of the Women's Euros 2025, Lightwell delivered a virtual studio that placed presenters inside a mountaintop pavilion overlooking Lake Lucerne, complete with alpine views, national flags and skies that shifted with the time of day. Built with live graphics and real-time rendering tools in Unreal Engine, the production achieved high-end, immersive results without physical studio limitations.
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Meta's partnership with the NBA streams 52 immersive games during the 2024-25 season in 180-degree VR through Xtadium and NBA Arena in Meta Horizon Worlds, allowing fans to watch from virtual courtside seats for free. NBA League Pass subscribers can watch every live game in mixed reality with real-time stats, creating premium viewing experiences accessible from home.
Best Sports Marketing Examples
With sports being such a vast entity worldwide, thousands of sports marketing activities are happening at all times, across hundreds of different sports and for millions of fans.
So, choosing the best sports marketing examples to share with you wasn’t that cut-and-dry. I’ve selected successful sports marketing campaigns from the most talked about, most loved by fans and those selected by Amar Singh for his yearly roundup.
And here’s a video we put together a while back with the BEST sports marketing campaigns ever.
IBM and Wimbledon | Match Chat and Likelihood to Win
The first example is the newest innovation stemming from their successful 36-year tech partnership between IBM and Wimbledon. In 2025, they launched two AI-powered features for enhancing digital fan engagement in their app.
Match Chat is an interactive AI assistant built with IBM WatsonX Orchestrate that answers fans' real-time questions during live singles matches. Fans can ask anything from "Who has converted more break points in the match?" to "Who is performing better?" The assistant is trained on Wimbledon's editorial style and tennis terminology using IBM Granite large language models.
Enhanced Likelihood to Win was previously a pre-match prediction tool, but now it updates dynamically throughout matches, delivering point-by-point analysis with real-time graphs.
What were the results of the campaign?
The partnership's 2025 achievements were impressive. The additions to the app were so powerful that the fan experience at Wimbledon was changed forever.
Like Chris Clements, Digital Products Lead at the All England Club, explained in the press release, the features "allowed fans to immerse and engage with matches in a way they have never done before."
The team shared the following results from the two AI improvements:
16% year-on-year increase in engagement across all platforms
Over 20 million fans following via app and website
As LeBron James enters his record-breaking 23rd NBA season, Nike crowned him the "Forever King" with a product launch and storytelling campaign that celebrates his career while also positioning the Nike brand for the future.
The campaign launched with the LeBron XXIII sneaker featuring 23 unique colorways, each telling a specific story from his career. Every pair ships in crown-molded boxes from three distinct eras:
"The Chosen 1 Arrives" (2002-2010)
"Taking the Throne" (2010-2018)
"Long Live the King" (2018-present)
All come with collectible charms and booklets detailing all 23 stories.
Notable colorways include "Uncharted" (commemorating his 40,000-point milestone), "Miami Twice" (celebrating back-to-back NBA championships) and "The Chosen One and the One Who Chose" (honoring LeBron and Bronny becoming the NBA's first father-son duo to play for the same team).
The campaign included a 32-second commercial featuring LeBron wearing a gold crown as a narrator recounts his journey: "They called him the Chosen One... Every rival was defeated. Every idol was destroyed. He took the crown and kept it. Behold the greatness, he is the Forever King."
Adidas | You Got This
Adidas launched the 2025 chapter of its "You Got This" campaign to address a critical problem. Their global research had revealed that four in five grassroots athletes regularly experience negative sideline commentary, leading them to quit sports entirely.
They launched a video featuring Aitana Bonmatí, Anthony Edwards, Aliyah Boston, Lamine Yamal, and Trinity Rodman, alongside everyday athletes, that shows how positive sideline support helps overcome self-doubt and pressure.
The story depicts athletes encountering moments of exhaustion and self-doubt, only to be lifted up by teammates, family members and coaches.
Adidas backed the campaign with activations, sending top athletes to grassroots sporting events to demonstrate positive encouragement in action.
Sports Forever | ESPN
ESPN launched its "Sports Forever" campaign in June 2025 to prepare audiences for its biggest transformation in decades: a direct-to-consumer streaming service launching in Fall 2025.
The campaign debuted during the first game of the NBA Finals, opening with footage from ESPN's first-ever broadcast on September 7, 1979, when anchor Lee Leonard declared viewers had reached "sports heaven."
The spot journeys through four decades of iconic ESPN moments, featuring championship coverage and legendary game moments. It ends with a fan receiving an ESPN app alert accompanied by the famous "DADADA, DADADA" jingle and onscreen text that says, "Fall 2025: The Next Era Begins."
"'Sports Forever' emphasizes that being a fan is not just a momentary engagement but a lifelong journey," explained Jo Fox, ESPN's SVP of Marketing. The campaign positions ESPN's 46-year heritage as the foundation for its streaming future.
Sports Marketing Materials: Everything Teams Need to Create
Like all marketing types, sports marketing relies on a range of marketing materials to plan, strategize, activate, communicate, and promote.
A lot of these materials are easily accessible within Visme. And for those instances, I share templates you can use straight away.
Sponsorship Materials
Sports sponsorship marketing, which also includes partnerships and endorsements, requires several materials throughout the cycle.
Let’s look at how Visme can help along the way.
Prospecting and Initial Contact
The first step in the journey begins with a proposal request or outreach email/letter to gauge interest. This sets the stage before sending any detailed materials.
The template below is an outreach letter introducing the possibility of a partnership between a softball team and a local organization.
Create your Sponsorship Letter with this easy-to-edit template!Edit and Download
Meeting / Pitch
Once you’ve piqued a potential sponsor's interest, you schedule a meeting or call with them. During this meeting, you will present the sponsorship deck, which provides an overview of your event/team, target audience and sponsorship opportunities.
Here’s a sponsorship presentation deck you can customize for your own team or league.
Create your Sponsorship Deck with this easy-to-edit template!Edit and Download
Proposal Submission
After the meeting, you send a detailed proposal with personalized activation ideas, packages, mockups, timelines, and videos. This allows the sponsor to review your ideas in depth.
The template below is a sponsorship proposal from our collection. There’s a lot more for you to discover on our proposal templates page.
Create your Sponsorship Proposal with this easy-to-edit template
Edit and Download
Once the sponsor indicates interest, you draft and sign a sponsorship agreement or contract. Make sure to infuse this document with your brand assets. It’ll help the sponsors keep you in mind at every communication touchpoint.
Use this pre-filled template to create your own contract. Stick to the text placeholder layout to keep the design intact.
Create your Sponsorship Contract with this easy-to-edit template!Edit and Download
Activation & Reporting
Finally, your team implements the sponsorship activities and provides regular reports showing ROI, engagement and impact analysis.
Activation Assets
Since activations are so varied, so are the assets your team needs. For starters, before you even activate anything, build a visual plan to show stakeholders what you’ll be doing.
Here’s one of our templates that’s already set up as an activation plan for a baseball team. It has clear timelines and descriptions that your sponsor will appreciate.
Create your Brand Activation Plan with this easy-to-edit template!Edit and Download
Regarding the content for the activation itself, it’ll depend on what the activation is exactly. If it's an event during which a player will teach kids how to pitch a ball, for example, create social media content, digital flyers, commemorative t-shirts and stickers, banners and other decorative materials that you’ll have to design or source from providers.
Here’s a flyer template for a sports event you can customize in minutes for your activation promotion.
Create your Event Flyer with this easy-to-edit template!Edit and Download
Out of Home (OOH) Advertisements
Out-of-home advertisements, like highway or bus stop billboards, are another type of sports marketing content you can consider for your brand.
According to Helen Miall, Chief Marketing Officer at VIOOH,
“Out-of-home (OOH) advertising is great for reaching sports audiences with strategically placed ads near stadiums and sports bars, where fans naturally congregate. Programmatic digital out-of-home (prDOOH) technology enhances this engagement by delivering real-time, dynamic content such as live scores or weather updates, making ads more relevant and impactful, allowing brands to tailor messages based on location and events.”
When pitching an OOH ad to your stakeholders, include design mockups in both the proposal and the plan.
This template is a good example of what an OOH mockup looks like. You can use it on its own or inside a project. Changing the visual inside the mockup is as easy as dragging it in from the media gallery.
Create your Mockup with this easy-to-edit template!Edit and Download
Your billboard design needs to be high resolution and quite large so that it looks right when printed and mounted. Contact the local billboard company where you plan to place your ad and they will have all the information you need to design an ad that looks great at that size.
Fan Engagement Content
At the heart of fan engagement is ongoing loyalty and emotional connection. There are several types of content that can help with this.
Inside stadiums, for example, set up touchscreen stations for fans to learn more about the teams playing and the players on the field that day. These can be interactive presentations with pop-ups, animations and other forms of interactivity.
For example, this is an interactive dashboard displaying a team’s data for the current season.
Create your Interactive Dashboard with this easy-to-edit template!Edit and Download
Other types of fan engagement include apparel with brand designs printed on it; you’ll need to create those designs. The hoodie, for example, is one of the most loved pieces of sports merchandising. Diehard fans collect them, wear them to games and even get them signed by their favorite players.
Create all sorts of designs for your hoodies, for activations or for sale as merchandise during match days.
Create your Mockup with this easy-to-edit template!Edit and Download
Internal Sports Marketing Tools
Aside from stakeholder- and fan-facing content, you’ll also need internal communication materials. This content is important because without it, your team will be disconnected and misaligned. Emails and text memos are fine, but visual, branded content has a greater impact on people.
“Internal communication is not just about sharing information; it also builds culture. When staff feel part of the project, they work with more motivation and commitment.”
Then, share internal reports and newsletters to share positive news and results.
Visme offers lots of features to help with this type of content creation. Create a dedicated workspace for internal communication content, set up the brand kit, invite a few collaborators, and save a set of branded templates with clear instructions for editing them.
This template is a crisis communication plan to ensure your team is clear on what to do in the event of an emergency.
Create your Communication Plan with this easy-to-edit template!Edit and Download
Recap & ROI Storytelling
Marketing efforts are null without an impact analysis or ROI report. Your sponsors will ask for this information, so you have to be ready to provide it. This also requires content creation in the form of reports.
How you put together an ROI analysis, partnership recap or impact report will depend on your sports brand's communication style. Typically, these reports are presentation decks or digital documents. They’re even better when you add storytelling with photos and videos of the activations.
Visme has lots of options, from presentations to documents and plenty of data visualization features to help you share metrics. You can also create a dashboard that automatically updates data, thanks to our integration with Google Docs.
This template below is an activation analytics dashboard, for example.
Create your Sports Activation Analytics Dashboard with this easy-to-edit template!Edit and Download
And this is a super practical one-pager recap that highlights all the critical information your sponsors need
Create your One Pager with this easy-to-edit template!Edit and Download
Best Sports Marketing Tools
As a sports marketer, you need a tech stack to support your efforts. Finding the ideal combination of tools takes time and some trial and error. I’ll save you some time and share the best tools for your sports marketing stack.
The table below lists all the tools. I also include alternatives for each one in case you want to try them as well.
Tool
Purpose
Price
Use Cases
Tools Like It
G2
Visme
Content creation & visual management
Free; Paid from $12.25/mo
Sponsorship proposals, partnership decks, season planning, data visualization, social media graphics, game-day marketing, analytics reporting
Good for medium, large and enterprise-level sports entities.
As I mentioned before, one of the critical puzzle pieces in sports marketing is content creation. It’s necessary for social media, content marketing, event marketing and much more.
Visme, a comprehensive content authoring platform, is just the tool your team needs to not only create visual content but also manage it while keeping it all branded and aligned with your sport brand’s identity.
Brand management with an easy-to-use Brand Wizard that builds a Brand Kit with your logos, brand colors, fonts, brand templates and collaboration controls like locking and unlocking brand assets inside graphics.
Collaboration features for teams to work simultaneously, comment on projects and provide feedback. Admins can assign content with due dates, manage what users can see and use and track how work is progressing across the organization.
Interactive features like clickable elements, hover effects, hotspots, animations and embedded videos to transform static visuals into engaging interactive experiences.
Analytics and tracking using the built-in analytics dashboard to see how many people viewed your content and how long they spent on each page.
Extensive template librarywith millions of professional designs for presentations, reports, proposals, infographics, social media graphics and more, all customizable to match your brand identity.
Data visualizationslike interactive charts and graphics, plus over 30 data widget types. Connect live data from Google Sheets directly into presentations for real-time data sharing.
Multiple export options, including PDF, PPTX, JPG, HTML5, GIF, SCORM, xAPI or online publishing with a shareable link that preserves all interactivity.
Here’s an inside look at one of our sports presentation templates inside the editor, with a table ready to be customized.
HubSpot Smart CRM is an AI-powered platform that offers a comprehensive workspace with several dedicated hubs for marketing, sales, service, content, data and commerce. It's known for its easy-to-use interface and excellent collaboration features.
When using HubSpot Smart CRM for sports marketing, you can use any of the hubs at any time. All these hubs are interconnected, meaning that you can use your collected CRM data plus the AI-powered features to do countless things to support your sports marketing efforts.
Top Features
Breeze AI with Breeze Assistant, Content, Social Media, Prospecting and Customer Agents and Breeze Intelligence.
Marketing Hub for emails, social media, SEO, landing pages, marketing automation, campaign management and A/B testing.
Sales Hub for pipeline management, email tracking, meeting scheduling, sales automation, deal tracking and sales forecasting.
Service Hub with a ticketing system, knowledge base, customer feedback tools, live chat and help desk automation.
Content Hub (HubSpot CMS) with a website builder, blog management, SEO optimization and content strategy tools.
Data Hub to bring data from other systems, Data Quality tools with AI-powered data monitoring and cleanup, data pipelines, syncs and quality controls.
Commerce Hub with a CPQ (Configure, Price, Quote) system, payment processing, invoicing, subscriptions, plus quote management and creation based on conversations and deal context.
Visual Journey Automation to track customer interactions that highlight updates to all touchpoints automatically, creating a complete view of the customer journey from first contact to conversion and beyond.
Advanced Reporting & Analytics: Flexible reports that track everything from deal progression to revenue attribution, with customizable dashboards that visualize data across up to 50 boards (Enterprise).
Target market database using 1,500+ company keywords, including industries, business type and specific criteria.
Security & Compliance
Single Sign-On (SSO) and Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)
Data segregation
GDPR, HIPAA and FINRA compliance options
SOC 2 Type II certification
Field-level permissions for granular access control
IP restrictions to limit account access to specific networks (Enterprise)
Audit logs track every action by humans, automations, integrations and AI
Good for medium to large teams with many collaborators.
Your sports marketing team needs a project management tool for effective organization and workflow management. Monday.com is a great tool for that. It provides a visual work operating system that helps teams manage projects, workflows and everyday work.
Best of all? You can connect your Monday.com environment to both HubSpot and Visme, keeping much of your work in one place so you don’t waste time looking for marketing and creative assets.
Top Features
Customizable Boards & Views: Kanban, Gantt charts, Timeline, Calendar, Workload, Chart view and Map view.
No-Code Automations to set up triggers like "when status changes to complete, notify the team and archive the item."
Advanced Integrations with Slack, Microsoft Teams, Gmail, Outlook, Google Drive, Zoom, Zapier, HubSpot, Salesforce and more.
Real-Time Collaboration is perfect for remote teams.
Monday AI to generate content, provide insights and automate routine tasks.
Workload Management to assign, track and balance team tasks. Workload view shows who is doing what and who’s available.
Time Tracking to monitor billable hours or project timelines.
Reporting Dashboards that combine data from multiple boards.
WorkForms to collect information with response tracking.
Security & Compliance
ISO/IEC 27001 and ISO/IEC 27018 certifications
Annual security audits and assessments
HIPAA compliance
SCIM provisioning
SSO and 2FA
IP restrictions and multi-level permissions
Session timeout controls and panic button
Pros
Requires minimal training
Mobile apps with full functionality
Guest access for client/vendor collaboration
Cons
Automation and integration limits can be restrictive on lower tiers
Can become expensive as team size grows, especially for Enterprise features
Good for sports teams of all sizes needing real-time communication and collaboration.
Seamless internal communication is critical for sports organizations managing multiple departments, remote staff and time-sensitive operations. Slack is a great option because it works seamlessly across all your devices and lets you keep conversations organized.
It offers a centralized communication hub where you can build custom channels and send private DMs.
Good for sports brands looking to build authentic, engaged fan communities and tap into real conversations.Sports communities exist both online and offline. They hang out on social media, follow your channels and share your content, but where are they having conversations about it all? On Reddit.
Reddit is a unique platform where your sports organization can build a community, engage with passionate fans and gather unfiltered feedback. Unlike Instagram or TikTok, Reddit's community-driven structure will help you have authentic conversations with your most dedicated supporters and fans.
The Reddit platform is organized into subreddits, dedicated groups focused on specific topics, teams or interests. r/sports, for example, is a huge subreddit where people talk about sports in general. There are also brand subreddits, like r/ArsenalFC, run by Arsenal FC itself.
As a sports brand, you can monitor subreddit discussions to understand fan sentiment on team performance, roster moves, ticket prices, stadium experience, marketing initiatives and more.
The platform encourages long-form discussion and deeper engagement than other social media
Advertising reaches users in relevant contexts when they're already engaged
Cons
Reddit users are skeptical of marketing and corporate presence; it requires an authentic approach
Negative sentiment can spread quickly if the community feels manipulated or ignored
Moderation requires significant time investment to maintain a healthy community
Anonymity can enable harsh criticism or trolling
Pricing
Subreddit Creation & Participation: Free
Reddit Premium: $5.99/month
Reddit Ads (Self-Serve): Minimum $5/day spend
Reddit Ads (Managed Service): Custom pricing
SponsorUnited for Sponsorship Strategies
G2 Rating: N/A
Good for sports organizations managing complex sponsorship portfolios and seeking data-driven partnership insights.
SponsorUnited provides sponsorship intelligence and management tools that help sports brands maximize partnership value. The platform combines market data, partnership tracking and strategic insights to inform sponsorship decisions.
Sports marketers use SponsorUnited to first identify which brands are actively investing in sports partnerships. Then, they use the data to benchmark sponsorship rates against competitors and also to discover new opportunities. This intelligence helps sponsorship professionals price packages competitively and approach prospects with proposals that demonstrate data-backed ROI forecasting.
Extensive database of sponsorship deals across sports, entertainment and cultural properties. Tracking of partnerships, deal values, activation strategies and category trends.
Benchmarking to compare your sponsorship portfolio against competitors and industry standards.
Category insights to analyze which industries and brands are investing in sports sponsorships.
Deal tracking & management to monitor existing partnerships, track activation requirements, manage deliverables and ensure fulfillment of contractual obligations.
Competitive intelligence to see which brands sponsor your competitors, how they activate partnerships and where gaps exist.
Sales prospecting tools to identify prospective brands expanding into sports marketing and companies with budgets for new partnerships.
Activation monitoring to track how sponsors activate their partnerships.
Rights inventory management to organize and package available sponsorship rights.
Reporting & Analytics to generate reports on portfolio performance, category trends and market opportunities.
Market Trends & Insights on emerging sponsorship trends, category growth and partnership evolution.
Security & Compliance
Data encryption
User permissions
Confidentiality protection
SOC 2 compliance
Pros
SponsorUnited works well to reveal market opportunities and helps identify emerging categories and partnership opportunities.
Offers high-stakes insights for professional sports partnership strategists.
Cons
Pricing requires a sales conversation
Requires strategic expertise to maximize the value of insights
Learning curve to fully utilize platform capabilities
Pricing
Contact sales for pricing
Wix Studio for Website Design, Development and Management
Good for sports organizations needing professional websites with advanced design control
Your sports brand's website serves as the central hub for ticket sales, fan engagement, news, merchandise and partnership information. You need a powerful but flexible website builder and a webmaster platform. Wix Studio is perfect for building your sport’s brand digital presence without needing extensive technical expertise.
Top Features
Advanced design capabilities with full creative control for responsive sites.
Extensive template gallery with sports themes included.
AI-powered design tools to generate site structures or content and optimize or enhance visuals.
CMS (Content Management System) that’s easy to update without developer assistance.
eCommerce integration to sell tickets, merchandise and experiences with integrated payment processing, inventory management.
SEO tools to optimize meta tags, structured data, XML sitemaps and mobile optimization.
Analytics and insights to track visitor behavior, conversion rates, traffic sources and user engagement.
Interactions and animations, like scroll effects, hover animations and interactive elements.
Scheduling and booking systems for stadium tours, experiences, meet-and-greets, youth camp registrations, etc.
Multi-language support to serve diverse fan bases.
Team collaboration to work simultaneously with role-based permissions and access levels.
App market for email marketing, social media integration, live chat, ticketing systems and more.
Custom forms for surveys, registration and data collection.
No coding required with powerful design flexibility
Mobile optimization
Regular updates and new features
Strong customer support with an extensive knowledge base
Cons
Cannot transfer your site to another platform (vendor lock-in)
Some advanced customizations still require coding knowledge
Limited backend customization compared to WordPress
Pricing
Light: $17 / month
Core: $29 / month
Business: $29 / month
Business Light: $159 / month
How to Use AI in Sports Marketing
Just as AI is changing everything around us, it’s also doing so in sports marketing and there’s data to prove it. The sports AI market was valued at $2.2bn in 2022 and is projected to reach $30bn by 2032. Plus, an IBM and Morning Consult survey revealed that 86% of tennis fans worldwide see value in AI-powered features. And that’s just in Tennis.
Emily Ketchen, CMO of Intelligent Devices Group at Lenovo, shares how AI is impacting different aspects of sports marketing: “The fusion of sports and technology is reshaping not just what fans experience, but how teams think, react and compete—allowing fans to become interactive participants and turning stadiums into smarter ecosystems.”
She mentions smarter stadiums and that’s one of the aspects we’ll discuss, but there’s so much more worth paying attention to regarding the use of AI in sports marketing.
Let’s dive in.
Highly Personalized Fan Engagement Strategies
AI and LLMs collect and analyze data much faster than humans can. This yields detailed fan information that helps you market with greater personalization at every touchpoint.
Here are some examples:
Targeted ads: AI analyzes fan behavior and purchase patterns to help you create precisely targeted campaigns. The NFL's partnership with Adobe uses AI to scale personalization across NFL.com, the NFL App and NFL OnePass, reaching fans at the right time with relevant content.
Personalized emails: AI analyzes past communications, purchase data and browsing behavior to determine which content resonates with each fan, optimizing send times and subject lines to increase engagement.
Dynamic content recommendations: LaLiga's app with WSC Sports automatically generates highlight clips and stories translated into multiple languages, delivering personalized content that matches individual viewing preferences.
Optimized Operational Efficiency
AI is great for fan-facing plays, but what about everything that happens behind the scenes? Well, AI can be a huge help in that regard as well.
Here are examples worth checking out:
Automated content creation: ESPN uses AI to customize coverage for streaming viewers, generate highlights, select material and voiceover narration.
AI chatbots and virtual assistants: Automated systems handle fan inquiries instantly, from seat directions to concession orders, operating 24/7.
Predictive analytics: AI forecasts attendance patterns, concession demand and staffing needs to optimize actions like inventory management and workforce scheduling.
Smart Stadiums
AI transforms stadiums into responsive, intelligent environments. Not surprisingly, the global AI in stadium market reached $1.5 billion in 2025 and is projected to grow to $6 billion by 2033.
Facial authentication: Stadiums like the Mercedes-Benz Stadium and other venues use Wicket's facial ticketing system to let fans enter by walking through gates; no phones or tickets needed. In a Wicket poll, 33% of fans identified this as their favorite stadium technology.
Real-time crowd management: At the Paris 2024 Olympics, smart cameras with advanced vision-powered motion tracking monitored crowd behavior and when suspicious activities or sudden crowd surges were spotted, security teams received instant alerts.
AI-powered navigation: The University of Alabama's UA Gameday app displays live concession wait times, letting fans see queue lengths from their seats. And Mapsted's AI provides precise indoor navigation to less congested stands.
Future Sports Marketing Trends
Sports marketing is constantly changing, day after day. Yes, a big part of it is the use of artificial intelligence in every aspect of business, but it’s also about the fans and what they want.
I’ve pinpointed a few aspects you’ll see more of in the near future.
More Experiential Sports Marketing Strategies
The future of sports marketing belongs to brands that create meaningful, tangible experiences fans can feel, touch and remember. Experiential marketing is poised to dominate the industry and it goes far beyond digital technology; it's about creating real human connections between the fans and the players.
Industry experts say that 77% of consumers agree that interacting with a brand at a live event increases their trust, making in-person activations increasingly valuable.
What does this heightened experiential marketing actually look like in practice? Looking ahead, experts anticipate fans will demand even more personalized, memorable experiences like meet-and-greets, VIP behind-the-scenes tours, interactive fan zones with on-site challenges, youth clinics led by professional players and exclusive access to locker room celebrations.
Teams will extend beyond game day with year-round touchpoints through training facilities, practice sessions and off-season events that keep fans connected when the stakes aren't as high.
Even Smarter Stadiums
Earlier, in the AI section, I shared about smart stadiums. These are only going to get better. If a stadium isn’t smart yet, it will be soon. And the ones that already are will be even smarter.
According to Fortune Business Insights, the global smart stadium market size was valued at USD 8.35 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow to USD 27.86 billion by 2032.
What’s behind this growth? The fans, of course.
Fans expect WiFi that works throughout the stadium, seats with charging stations, easy food and drink ordering through dedicated apps, and AR features that enhance what they see on the field.
The data backs it up. About 82% of in-person attendees use mobile apps during games; 44% for real-time commentary, 41% for stats and 35% for enhanced experiences. These numbers will only increase over time.
In the coming years, AI-powered services, IoT (Internet of Things) automations and more tech-based experiences will make stadiums even more enjoyable for fans while also making the spaces more efficient for them and the stadium staff.
More Fantasy Sports
Parallel to all the classic sports, there’s also Fantasy Sports, which has grown beyond friend groups and well into the realm of sports marketing. Statistics back this up, because the fantasy sports market was valued at USD 24.85 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 56.38 billion by 2030.
So, as fantasy sports become less niche and way more mainstream, sports brands and sponsors are taking part and becoming more visible.
Experts predict that fantasy sports will keep reshaping how fans consume sports. For starters, professional leagues now view fantasy integration as both a revenue extension and a fan-engagement flywheel. Major media partnerships are increasingly integrating fantasy features directly into live broadcasts and streaming services.
Strategic partnerships are also evolving in this space. PrizePicks expanded its Wave Sports + Entertainment partnership in March 2025 to amplify podcast-led acquisition via 2.8 billion annual impressions, demonstrating how fantasy platforms are leveraging influencer partnerships and new media formats to reach audiences.
The technology powering these platforms also continues to advance rapidly, especially AI-driven personalization, predictive analytics and blockchain integrations.
How Sports Teams Use Visme Across the Season
Professional sports organizations produce high-quality visual content throughout the year, from pre-season planning presentations and sponsorship proposals, to in-season partnership activations and post-season recap reports.
The Florida Panthers use Visme to Create Branded Presentations Across Teams
The Florida Panthers' partnership solutions team uses Visme for partnership sales and activation solutions. Bridget Sullivan, Director of Partnership Solutions, created branded templates to help her team work on content without relying on the design team.
When the Panthers wanted to work with a brand that initially wasn't interested, they crafted a winning proposal using Visme. After reviewing the presentation, the brand's response changed completely.
"They specifically called out that they wanted to continue the conversation due to the quality of our presentation," Sullivan shared. "They could see the level of care, detail and time put into it, which helped showcase the level of craftsmanship and professionalism our organization offers."
The presentation led to closing the deal and the Panthers reduced presentation creation time from over a week to just 1-2 days.
The Denver Broncos use Visme to Create Partnership Content
Several Denver Broncos employees use Visme for partnership marketing and corporate sales. They created centralized branded templates accessible to anyone who needed them, helping maintain brand integrity while reducing creation time.
"We utilize Visme a lot. We're using it from the beginning to even after the end of the season," explained Matt Swiren, Manager of Partnership Marketing. "We're creating presentations to show our plans for season planning and just recaps and Visme provides a great way to do it."
The Broncos have created over 500 projects in Visme, using the platform's analytics to track engagement and visualize data internally. "At the Broncos, we recommend Visme to other teams, brands or organizations looking for a one-stop shop to create internal and external collateral," Swiren added.
The Los Angeles Football Club uses Visme to Visualize and Create Analytics Reporting
LAFC uses Visme for partnership relations, sales, analytics and reporting. Jaime Kelm, Director of Business and Data Strategy, discovered Visme's ability to embed Tableau charts directly into presentations, which became a game-changer for creating data-driven sponsorship decks.
"Time is money for our sales reps, so the quicker and easier they can put something together and customize it, that's all the better so they can spend more time on outreach," Kelm explained.
Additionally, the built-in analytics help the team track engagement: "If someone spent more time on one slide than another, we can pinpoint what parts of the sponsorship will showcase the most value for potential clients."
"I absolutely recommend Visme due to its dynamic functionality and ability to integrate ever-changing media and digital technologies," Kelm shared. "That, combined with a collaborative environment that empowers our team to be more efficient with time, has been a huge plus."
Sports Marketing FAQs
Sports marketing is challenging but not harder than other marketing fields; it’s just different. With the right tools and a team that’s passionate about sports, these challenges are easy to overcome. The issues you could possibly consider hard include:
Managing unpredictable game outcomes
Coordinating multiple stakeholders (athletes, sponsors and venues)
Maintaining year-round fan engagement.
The four segments of sports marketing follow the traditional marketing mix:
Product: Creating sports offerings that meet fan and athlete needs, from merchandise to experiences.
Price: Setting competitive pricing for tickets, memberships and products that balances profitability with accessibility.
Promotion: Building awareness through advertising, social media, public relations and fan engagement campaigns.
Place: Ensuring products are available where customers shop, including stadiums, retail stores and online platforms.
Sports marketing drives the entire sports business ecosystem. It generates the revenue needed to support teams, athletes and communities. Marketing transforms casual viewers into loyal fans.
Social media changed sports marketing, from a live broadcast system to an interactive conversation, even when it’s off-season. Key changes include direct athlete-to-fan communication, real-time engagement and year-round monetization. Social media also enables measurable ROI tracking through fan engagement analytics.
Key sports marketing trends for 2025-2026 include:
AI-powered personalization
Smart stadiums
Year-round engagement
Ready to Dominate Marketing On & Off the Field?
As you’ve seen in this playbook, sports marketing in 2026 and beyond requires a good foundation and plenty of drive. Success comes from mastering the seven core pillars: brand storytelling, fan engagement, sponsorships, activation management, content production, analytics and season-long consistency.
Additionally, whether you're managing partnerships, creating social media content or planning experiential activations, your sports brand must stay authentic.
Use the strategies and tools we've shared to build year-round marketing plays that will nurture casual viewers into lifelong fans. Use Visme’s extensive content creation features to support your efforts throughout the process, with proposals, plans, reports and so much more.
Orana has been a writer for Visme since 2018, covering topics like design, visual marketing, data visualization and visual content creation. Orana has a background in graphic and web design, makeup artistry for film and theater and ongoingly takes courses on digital marketing, UI/UX and other related topics. See Orana’s work at www.oranavelarde.com.
