This article was originally published to FCbarcelona.com
FC Barcelona is teaming up with Innovative Partnerships Group promote, with which the club has already started working on the search for new partners and strategic associations for the project. Thus, Barça is joining forces with leading international companies with the aim of maximising the generation of new revenue associated with the future stadium.
Based in the United States, both companies are among the leaders in their respective areas of expertise and provide a vision of the best practices and trends on the international side in the commercial use of large sports facilities. Their experience will play a key role in the generation of new income, a fundamental element for the project to restructure the Spotify Camp Nou, as well as Espai Barça in general. Two of the main ways to achieve this goal are new partnership agreements linked with the stadium, and a renewed offer of VIP spaces and experiences once the work is finished.
Regarding the former area, the current agreement with Spotify for the title rights of the Camp Nou was just the first of a series of additional agreements on which the club is working with leading companies in sectors such as sustainability, mobility and technology, and which should be closed in the coming months. The future Stadium will offer a new range of 100% Barça experiences, in addition to a design that incorporates a wide variety of VIP boxes and seats of much higher quality than at present, and in line with the best European stadiums, the aim being to treble the number of places currently being offered.
These proposed revenue sources are two of the most essential for the viability of the financing plan proposed for the project. The plan is for them to jointly report to the club more than 120 million euros per year once the new stadium is finished and at full capacity.
About Innovative Partnerships Group
Innovative Partnerships Group (IPG 360) is a leading Los Angeles-based naming rights, business development and international marketing firm focused on generating long-term strategic business partnerships for prestigious global brands. It is specialised in the sports, music and entertainment industries and has extensive experience with clients from professional leagues, governing bodies and franchises and teams from the main sports competitions including LaLiga, NFL, NBA, NHL, MLS, MLB and the Olympics.
Innovative Partnerships Group also works with a patented system, Partnership Intelligence ™, which helps companies and brands accurately assess, align and measure their potential sponsorship deals. The company has been recognised on several occasions in recent years by Sports Business Journal as one of the leading sports marketing agencies in this industry
This article was originally published in SportBusinessJournal
Innovative Partnerships Group is bringing on two execs in its Dallas office. John Alper will join as SVP/business development and partnerships and Amanda Dick comes on as an account exec.
Alper will be a co-leader for Innovative Partnerships Groups global roster of sports and entertainment properties, alongside Managing Director Matt Wiener. He will lead the build out of a naming rights, partnerships sales and account management team and serve as a member on the Innovative Partnerships Group executive team. Prior to Innovative Partnerships Group, Alper worked for the Mavericks and FC Dallas on the team and venue side, and later spent 10 years with Premier Partnerships and Legends on the agency side.
Dick comes to Innovative Partnerships Group after over a decade of experience with outfits like FC Dallas, the Cowboys, Dr. Pepper and Snapple
This article was originally published in PRNewswire
Provided by by Vinfast Automotive
VinFast, the world's first automotive manufacturer to completely switch from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles, and IRONMAN, the global leader in long distance triathlon, have announced a global partnership for VinFast to become the first ever naming rights partner of the IRONMAN U.S. Series from 2022. Under the agreement, VinFast will also become the title partner for the 2022 IRONMAN® World Championship and the 2023 IRONMAN® 70.3® World Championship, each continuing through 2025, as well as the Exclusive Electric Vehicle Partner of the IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 Series in U.S., Europe, and Asia through 2025.
Moreover, VinFast will be the Exclusive Automotive Vehicle, Electric Vehicle, Electric Scooter, and Electric Bus partner, providing electric vehicles, including scooters, cars, and buses for IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 events.
As Naming Rights partner for the VinFast IRONMAN U.S. Series, Title partner of the VinFast IRONMAN World Championship, and a Premier Partner, VinFast will be provided with highly visible brand association at IRONMAN events around the globe. It will provide unique direct to consumer experiences onsite at IRONMAN races with opportunities for participants and fans to experience a next generation EV car through test drives and other experiential programming.
The signing ceremony for the partnership was held on July 23, 2022 in Nha Trang, during the Vingroup Elite Vietnam Tour 3, and witnessed by many world-renowned media personalities and industry opinion leaders from North America.
"The IRONMAN Group is delighted to have developed with VinFast a comprehensive and far-reaching partnership, inclusive of our pinnacle IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship events," said Andrew Messick, President and Chief Executive Officer for The IRONMAN Group. "We value the way VinFast pushes the boundaries forward through their smart and eco-friendly electric vehicles to create a sustainable future for all. This is much like the spirit of IRONMAN and our athletes to break through and surpass preconceived boundaries."
As the world's first automotive manufacturer to completely switch from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles, Vietnam's first EV brand, and a pioneer in many innovative areas and technologies, VinFast takes pride in achieving what many people thought could be impossible. VinFast has brought world-class quality EVs to consumers in the outstandingly short time, at a reasonable cost. Providing sustainable transportation, exemplifying the journey of champions is one of many efforts VinFast has made towards the goal to make premium electric vehicles attainable to everyone, contributing to the global electric vehicle revolution, for a greener and more sustainable future.
By associating with IRONMAN and its series of mass participation sporting events that positively affect millions of people around the world, VinFast takes the opportunity to widely promote itself to the global citizens, as well as inspiring on the use of electric vehicles.
Regarding the strategy behind the partnership, Ms. Le Thi Thu Thuy, Vingroup Vice Chairwoman and VinFast Global CEO stated: "Sharing the spirit that 'Anything is Possible,' we are honored to be a Premier Partner of IRONMAN & IRONMAN 70.3 Series. We are proud to be part of the moments that push people beyond their boundaries, and beyond what many have thought is humanly possible. We are certain that our electric mobility will strongly underpin the journeys of IRONMAN athletes around the world to be boundless."
IRONMAN events are globally known for being one of the world's most challenging single-day sporting competitions. Since its debut in 1978, the IRONMAN triathlons are a series of full-distance races composed of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bicycle ride, and a 26.2-mile run, in that order. Similar to the IRONMAN triathlons, the IRONMAN 70.3 triathlons maintain the structure and format of the original triathlon series but with half-distance triathlons composed of 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike, and 13.1-mile run.
With more than 40 IRONMAN triathlon races and 90 IRONMAN 70.3 triathlons worldwide, hundreds of thousands of athletes from around attempt to qualify for the respective IRONMAN World Championship and IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship which are known for their grueling course, challenging race conditions, and international media coverage. Receiving significant acclaim and public interest, the live broadcasts and documentary recap specials have earned top honors inclusive of 17 Sports Emmy Awards.
VinFast - a member of Vingroup – envisioned to drive the movement of global smart electric vehicle revolution. Established in 2017, VinFast owns a state-of-the-art automotive manufacturing complex with globally leading scalability that boasts up to 90% automation in Hai Phong, Vietnam. Strongly committed to the mission for a sustainable future for everyone, VinFast constantly innovates to bring high-quality products, advanced smart services, seamless customer experiences, and pricing strategy for all to inspire global customers to jointly create a future of smart mobility and a sustainable planet. Learn more at: https://vinfastauto.com.
Established in 1993, Vingroup is one of the leading private conglomerates in the region, with a total capitalization of $35 billion USD from three publicly traded companies (as of November 4, 2021). Vingroup currently focuses on three main areas: Technology and Industry, Services and Social Enterprise. Find out more at: https://www.vingroup.net/en.
This article was originally published in Charlotte Business Journal
Written by Erik Spanberg
Paying for a separate practice center for the Charlotte Hornets depends on selling $60 million worth of corporate naming rights for a companion arena district next to Spectrum Center, according to city government plans. In a presentation to Charlotte City Council in June, city administrators, citing a consultant’s analysis, asserted that sponsors will be highly interested in aligning with a district that, for the moment, doesn’t exist.
If successful, the revenue would fully pay for the practice center, which, in turn, would be built as part of a redeveloped Charlotte Transportation Center. Jeff Marks, CEO at Los Angeles-based sponsorship sales firm Innovative Partnerships Group, explained the math to council this way: $2 million annually for district naming rights, $1 million to $2 million for the practice center, and similar combined revenue from five smaller founding partnerships. Assuming a 10-year term, the partnerships would add up to $60 million.
In a separate interview with CBJ, Marks said the mindset and strategy of naming rights and related sponsorships have changed.
Slapping logos on signs and websites is a small part of bringing partnerships to life, he added.
“More important than just generating revenue to finance the building, it’s more around creating an environment where you find really good partners that can actually come in and be part of the ecosystem,” Marks told CBJ. “… In return, they get an authentic business relationship to go use it as a sales platform, rather than just a marketing platform.”
Last year, Innovative Partnerships Group helped match Footprint, an Arizona-based maker of compostable and sustainable food packaging, utensils, and cups, with the NBA Phoenix Suns. It’s a deal that embodies what Marks described above.
Footprint has helped the arena and the team remove plastics in various parts of the building, replacing them with sustainable products. In addition, the restaurants and vendors at the arena, and other businesses near the arena, can be tapped for business-to-business relationships at the same time consumers are using and testing the company’s products. Those types of multi-faceted relationships yield stronger relationships and better results, Marks said.
Kansas City’s Power & Light District, which is not an Innovative Partnerships Group client, offers another example of lining up a roster of sponsorships across multiple categories. The website for the 9-block entertainment, retail, and residential district developed by The Cordish Companies lists 11 companies as corporate partners, including Evergy Inc., PNC Financial Services Group Inc., and multiple beer and liquor brands.
During a recent virtual appearance before City Council, Marks was asked about the potential for drawing sponsors to other city-backed services and investments, including transit and the Atrium Health-anchored medical school district to be built on the edge of uptown.
Marks told CBJ that those types of possibilities could lead to larger and more broadly connected sponsorships.
“Because it’s the city and not an owner (of a team), we potentially could do some stuff that is more valuable and more impressive,” he said.
