ABSTRACT
There are many contemporary issues facing sport sponsorship and branding today. The aim of this book is to provide readers with a broad overview of some of these issues. As a prelude to these issues, this introductory chapter reviews recent studies and emerging issues. Firstly, the chapter examines recent studies in sport event sponsorship. With many leading sport brands becoming increasingly global and expanding into new geographic regions, the issue of brand familiarity and its effect on sponsorship effectiveness are discussed. This is followed by a review on the concept of endorsement, a form of sponsorship of athletes; with social diversity issues becoming more important as a factor in consumers’ choice, the use of para-athletes as endorsers is further examined. Finally, with social media marketing becoming entrenched, the complexities of promoting a brand via social media are explored. Unlike sport promotions via traditional media, the meaning of the sport brand is co-created by members of the social media site.
