Fellipe Drommond, CEO of Magnus Futsal, opened the debate by explaining that clubs have been looking for brands that identify with their values and go far beyond a simple financial contribution. “Sport in general suffers a lot from the lack of credibility of sponsors. When we go to the market and do a study of its heating, we see that bets are present in practically all Brazilian football teams. Of course, we seek market follow-up, but we also give importance to the values of the company that sponsors us, who is behind us, who shares with the project that we envision, all of this is fundamental,” he said.
Jorge Avancini, Vice President of Marketing at S.C. Internacional, said that regional issues also interfere in some choices, however, he admitted that the club's new partnership with EstrelaBet has already broken down old barriers. “Now with Estrelabet we break the paradigm that if you are in a club, you have to be in a rival in the same city. This is a situation that confuses the companies, since there is no data that proves that there was a reprisal for the brand by the fans of the club that did not have the support,” he said.
Rafael Zanette, Head of Sponsorship at EstrelaBet, said that the operator seeks to engage the fans of the sponsored clubs, thus the brand embraces the team's causes. “Each situation is different, it's a new project. We always work with the same base, which is image projection and fan engagement. That's why with Inter we were even more daring because we stated that we are not sponsors, but fans of the club. This is the way Estrelabet goes to market. We want to arrive, embrace the cause, be together with the team and we know that this will generate for us an engagement among the fans that will revert to the operator. I suffer with Remo, Inter, Magnus. We really want the partnership to consolidate and grow together.”
For Mateus Lemos, Head of Sponsorships, Influencers and Activations at PixBet, the main ally for the work to support clubs to have good results is the activation that needs to be used at all times.
“It is very important to have media within football, which today is the sport that governs the Brazilian market. But I understand that brand activation is what makes the difference within football sponsorship. It is much more important for you to bring the fans closer to the brand, so that they understand who you are, what you work on, your purpose; then it will start converting that job back. It's like having a Ferrari, you have to put gas. Activation is that fuel. In victory the fan will always be with us, but in defeat it is important to work so that the fan understands that you are close to the team,” he explained.
Finally, the director of Internacional, Jorge Avancini, highlighted a point that many clubs still do not understand and that can generate much fruit for everyone. “Sponsorships end, they are finite. But, the moment they leave, another bank or operator has to have the idea that Inter is cool. So, my role there is also to make sure that the bank has more account holders, the insurance sells more health plans and the bookmakers have players. This is a role that clubs have not yet identified very well,” he concluded.
Source: Exclusive GMB
