Keys to Obtaining a Sports Sponsorship for Athletes

For athletes participating in sports, finding sponsorship can happen naturally. As a member of a team, an athlete may enjoy benefits of sponsorship with the rest of the team. If the performance of the team or individual rise to a certain level, fan appreciation and popularity can bring opportunities for individual sponsorship and royalties.

Not every athlete would agree gaining sponsorship works that easily. Athletes and youth teams who do not live in urban areas or train in individual sports still need sponsorship. The task of locating prospective sponsors and obtaining sponsorship may appear to be the highest hurdle the athlete or team must face. Finding sponsors is not an impossible task. Like every aspect of sports marketing, there are right ways and wrong ways of setting about getting the task done.

Sports Sponsorship Request Letters

The first thing for individual athletes or teams searching for sponsorship should do is research. Reading the local newspapers or watching television ads and sport events will quickly provide a list of potential sport sponsorship possibilities. Local businesses should not be overlooked just because they are not apparently involved in sport sponsorship. Perhaps they want to be but are not sure how to go about it. Research can also be done online or in libraries within the biographical data on sport athletes. This should provide more names for the list of potential sponsors.

The next step is preparation of corporate sponsorship request letters. The sponsorship request letter needs to show the application has been prepared with care, thought and consideration about what the goal of the sponsorship for the athlete, team or organization is and how the sponsor fits with that goal.

Obtaining the name of the correct contact person within the organization is very important. Serious efforts should be made during research to obtain this information. If the contact name is obtained by calling the target prospective sponsor, it should be verified in at least one other way.

Once potential sponsors, with contact person information, have been identified, the preparation of the sponsorship request letter can continue. An excellent way to start is with an interesting description of the individual or team requesting sponsorship. A potential sponsor will first want to know who the athlete or team are, how many members makes up the team or organization. This should be presented as a personal introduction. Then information on awards or honors the applicants have earned is given.

Now the sponsor knows some relevant information about the applicants. The time has come to explain the extent of sponsorship requested. Start this section by explaining the goals of the individual, the team or organization. This may show the potential sponsor a fit they had not considered. At this point, the sponsors could begin to see possibilities on their own.

Now the applicants should explain how they see the sponsor benefitting from the sponsor to athlete relationship. Explanation of the schedule and destinations of sport events is important because it gives the sponsor an idea of the sponsorship exposure their participation will provide.

The closing of the corporate sponsorship request should suggest the length of time for the sponsorship with an estimate of the cost of sponsorship based on all information presented in the sponsorship letter. Usually the potential sponsor will reply suggesting a meeting or provide a letter saying sponsorship is not possible.