ESA News

After a virtual ceremony in 2021, the ESA Awards will return to London in March 2022. The ceremony will take place at The Brewery venue on Thursday 10 March (7pm). Tables and individual tickets are now on sale with an early bird offer (saving £300 per table) available until Friday 7 January. Early birds can also avail of a special offer rewarding them with one free entry to the 2023 ESA Awards. Entry will be permitted according to strict COVID-19 guidelines. The ESA Awards Committee ... read more

Organisations from 10 countries are in the running for recognition in Europe’s most prestigious sponsorship awards – scheduled for a return to London in 2022. The 2022 ESA Awards will showcase a wide panorama of the sponsorship industry and demonstrate how brands, rights holders, agencies and other organisations continued to rise to the challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic to deliver market-leading results. The shortlisted entries for the 2022 ESA Awards were revealed today by the ... read more

DataPOWA has renewed its partnership with the European Sponsorship Association (ESA) and is unveiled today as Event Partner of the 2022 ESA Awards. Europe’s most prestigious sponsorship awards ceremony returns to London early next year and DataPOWA, the leading sports marketing and data analytics business, will be a prominent partner for the fourth year in succession. DataPOWA will also sponsor the Sport Sponsorship > €5M category at the 2022 ESA Awards ceremony. After the virtual ... read more

The latest results of the ESA Sponsorship Sentiment Tracker (SST) showed record highs, with confidence in the health of the industry peaking at 7.5 out of 10 in Wave 12 (see above). Sustainability shone through as a key topic for participants, especially those representing brands. Around two-thirds (64%) of brands highlighted the importance of potential partner organisations having a sustainability policy in place, while only 32% of rights holders and 24% of agencies reflected this ... read more

The European Sponsorship Association is delighted to announce the results of the 2021 ESA Diploma, its largest-ever and most international intake, with candidates from 14 different countries (including 12 from South Africa and 11 from Ireland). A total of 87 students from the Class of ‘21 have successfully qualified with their Diplomas, marking the culmination of a challenging and rewarding eight months of study. Six students graduated with the rare commendation of a Distinction grade, ... read more

The European Sponsorship Association, the membership body that aims to inspire, unite and grow a welcoming and diverse sponsorship industry, is delighted to announce the next ESA Diploma course commencing in January 2022. This marks the start of the Diploma’s second decade, having qualified nearly 600 practitioners in its first ten years of progressive growth. Earning a reputation as the industry’s most coveted qualification, the ESA Diploma is widely recognised as a rite of passage for ... read more

The European Sponsorship Association is thrilled to reveal the judging panels for the 2022 ESA Awards, the most prestigious sponsorship prizes in Europe. The panels are a who’s-who of the European sponsorship industry, featuring thought leaders and sponsorship experts from major rights holders, sponsors, agencies and industry suppliers. There are 18 categories to be judged in the main ESA Awards and this panel is supplemented by our ESA Best of Europe sponsored by Sponsorium ... read more

After a record-breaking entry in 2021, the 2022 ESA Awards offers another chance to celebrate the best of the sponsorship industry in the face of adversity. The prestigious #ESAawards will again be organised by the European Sponsorship Association, whose mission is to inspire, unite and grow a welcoming and diverse sponsorship industry. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused major disruption to the sports, arts and entertainment sectors in the period covered by the 2022 Awards (March 2020 to ... read more

The European Sponsorship Association is an elected trade body representing the interests of its members – our goal is to inspire, unite and grow a welcoming and diverse sponsorship industry. ESA focuses on growing talent and sustaining a future through education, thought leadership and debate. We also seek to recognise and showcase best practice and excellence through the ESA Awards and raise industry standards with our ESA Diploma, ESA Sponsorship Sales Certificate and ESA Leaders Programme ... read more

Three new Directors have been elected to the Board of The European Sponsorship Association (ESA) at today’s online AGM. Rebecca Martin of O2 Telefonica, Khadeen O’Donnell of English National Ballet and Daragh Persse of The Brand Fans were elected by their fellow ESA Members, adding significant diversity as well as professional credibility to the 15-strong Board. Existing Board Directors Sophie Morris of Millharbour ... read more

The European sponsorship community favours relaxing the media commitment required from professional sportspeople, new research from the European Sponsorship Association (ESA) has found. The findings were revealed in Wave 11 of ESA’s Sponsorship Sentiment Tracker (SST), which also revealed an upsurge in confidence about the health of the sponsorship industry. In the wake of the withdrawal of world No.2 tennis player Naomi Osaka from the 2021 French Open, citing stress resulting from ... read more

A dip in confidence within the European sponsorship marketing community has reflected ongoing challenges in overcoming the COVID-19 pandemic, the latest research from the European Sponsorship Association has found. With some countries currently back in lockdown and vaccine programmes taking longer than anticipated, a regional disparity was detectable in the data but even in the UK, where vaccine rollout has been rapid, confidence dipped after the record highs of the previous survey in ... read more

Confidence among the European sponsorship marketing community has reached its highest point since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, new research from the European Sponsorship Association has found. The research also revealed that marketers are strongly in favour of gambling and betting sponsorship being better regulated, with some restrictions imposed. The ninth edition of the ESA Sponsorship Sentiment Tracker, conducted in March 2021, registered a clear increase in positivity about the ... read more

Confidence among the European sponsorship marketing community has risen sharply, new research from the European Sponsorship Association has found. The eighth edition of the ESA Sponsorship Sentiment Tracker, conducted in February 2021, has registered a solid increase in positive sentiment about the future of the industry from all parts of the sponsorship sector.  According to the latest wave of ESA’s regular survey, confidence hit a new average high, reaching 6.8 out of 10. This ... read more

Tuesday 2 February, 2021 Confidence about the overall health of the European sponsorship industry has taken a dip in the latest ESA Sponsorship Sentiment Tracker, as a third COVID-19 wave continues to take its toll across the continent. According to the seventh edition of ESA’s regular survey, confidence has dropped across all parts of the industry to an average of 6.3 out of 10. This represents a fall of 0.4 points from wave six of the Sentiment Tracker, released in November 2020, when ... read more

ESA is recruiting a Marketing Communications & Events Manager to help us to continue to deliver our strategic vision of uniting, inspiring and growing the sponsorship industry in Europe. The successful candidate will have a good understanding of the sponsorship industry and related marketing disciplines, as well as excellent written and communications skills, strong interpersonal skills and an ability to identify trends in technology, changing customer behaviour and the subsequent shifts in ... read more

The European sponsorship industry has demonstrated the clearest signs yet of an imminent recovery, according to a continent-wide survey of senior industry leaders conducted by the European Sponsorship Association. Wave six of the ESA Sponsorship Sentiment Tracker, conducted throughout November, has found that confidence across all parts of the industry has hit its highest level since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. When asked on a 10-point scale how confident they were in the future of ... read more

The European Sponsorship Association (ESA) is pleased to announce that leading sports marketing and data analytics business, DataPOWA, has partnered with the 2021 ESA Awards. As part of the partnership, DataPOWA will become the official Event Partner of the most prestigious awards ceremony in European sponsorship. DataPOWA will also become the category partner of the coveted Sport Sponsorship category at the 2021 ESA Awards ceremony. With COVID-19 causing widespread disruption to the ... read more

Brands continue to be the most confident, while positivity amongst agencies has bounced backCOVID-19 pandemic spurs all parts of the sponsorship industry to do more to measure and evaluate partnershipsNearly two-thirds of organisations have completed or partially finalised negotiations of sponsorship affected by COVID-19 Confidence amongst sponsorship industry professionals has increased slightly in the European Sponsorship Association’s continent-wide survey, with brands and sponsors ... read more

The European Sponsorship Association is delighted to announce the successful completion of the largest ever ESA Diploma class. A total of 76 students from the January 2020 intake of the ESA Diploma graduated this week, marking the culmination of a challenging and unique eight months of study. The 2020 ESA Diploma class saw the students successfully adapting to a series of alternative online components to cope with the global COVID-19 pandemic. Three students graduated with Distinction ... read more

The European Sponsorship Association is thrilled to reveal the judging panels for the 2021 ESA Awards, the most prestigious sponsorship prizes in Europe. The panels are a who’s-who of the European sponsorship industry, featuring thought leaders and sponsorship experts from major rights holders, sponsors, agencies and industry suppliers. After our highest-ever number of applications, a record number of judges will adjudicate the 16 categories that make up the main ESA Awards. This ... read more

Confidence amongst sponsorship industry professionals has fallen slightly in the European Sponsorship Association’s continent-wide survey, but rights holders are feeling more confident than ever. Wave four of the ESA Sponsorship Sentiment Tracker, conducted throughout August, has found that overall confidence has dipped to an average of 6.1 out of 10, down from a peak of 6.3 in wave three (conducted in July). Wave five of the research is now live - head here to participate! The ... read more

The ESA Awards will return in 2021 with new categories and a streamlined format to celebrate the best of the sponsorship industry despite unprecedented challenges. The prestigious #ESAawards is organised by the European Sponsorship Association, whose mission is to inspire, unite and grow the sponsorship industry. With COVID-19 causing widespread disruption to the sports and entertainment sectors in recent months, the 2021 ESA Awards will adopt a new, simplified ‘elevator pitch’ ... read more

European Sponsorship Association's Sentiment Tracker finds sharp rise in confidence across both the United Kingdom and continental Europe in third wave of industry-wide survey The fourth wave of the Sponsorship Sentiment Tracker is online now - to participate in the survey head here. The European Sponsorship Association has today revealed the third wave of results from the ESA Sponsorship Sentiment Tracker, an industry survey gauging the health and confidence of leading sponsorship ... read more

Confidence rebounds across the sponsorship industry, with positive sentiment more widespread on the continent, as European sport and entertainment starts long road to recovery The European Sponsorship Association has today revealed the second wave of results from the ESA Sponsorship Sentiment Tracker, an industry survey gauging the health and confidence of leading sponsorship organisations across Europe and giving insights into the response of major sponsors. More than 200 thought ... read more

Europe’s best and brightest sponsorship campaigns were recognised at the 13th annual ESA Awards ceremony, held on Wednesday, 26 February. More than 400 sponsorship and sports marketing leaders came together to celebrate ESA’s mission to unite, inspire and grow the sponsorship industry, at The Brewery in central London. With prizes across 30 categories, the 2020 ESA Awards ceremony was the largest in the history of the ESA Awards. Demonstrating the diversity of the ESA Awards, the big ... read more

After an overwhelming response from ESA members and the wider sponsorship community, the 2020 ESA Awards ceremony has completely sold out. More than 400 sponsorship and sports marketing leaders will come together to celebrate Europe’s best sponsorship campaigns at the 13th annual ESA Awards ceremony next Wednesday, 26 February. Held at The Brewery in central London, the 2020 ESA Awards gala will see more winners than ever before, with prizes across 30 categories. Many of the ... read more

The European Sponsorship Association is pleased to announce that international rugby player and businesswoman, Sene Naoupu, will host the 2020 ESA Awards ceremony. Held at The Brewery in central London, the 2020 ESA Awards ceremony is the most prestigious date on the European sponsorship calendar. More than 350 sponsorship and sports marketing industry leaders will attend the gala, with 30 awards up for grabs. With a month until the 2020 ESA Awards, only a limited number of tickets ... read more

The European Sponsorship Association (ESA) is pleased to announce that Misha Sher, Global Vice President at MediaCom Sport & Entertainment, has been appointed to its board of directors. Misha will replace much-loved industry veteran Toby Hester, who passed away in September 2019, on ESA’s 15-person board of directors. Head here to see ESA’s tribute to Toby With more than 15 years of experience in sports marketing and sponsorship, Misha’s unique skill-set will assist ESA in its ... read more

The International Sports Convention (ISC) is pleased to announce that the European Sponsorship Association (ESA) has joined the ISC 2020 edition taking place on June 17-18, 2020 at The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London.   ESA Chairman, Andy Westlake, said: "Given our mission to 'inspire, unite and grow the sponsorship industry’, ESA always looks to partner with events that provide a platform to share best practices from our dynamic industry. The sponsorship and sports marketing ... read more

The European Sponsorship Association is pleased to announce a new partnership with Global Sports Week, a major new sports industry conference to be held in Paris next year. Between February 5th and 7th 2020, more than 1,000 global leaders and change makers will gather at the iconic Louvre, in the heart of the world’s emerging sports capital, to shape its future of sports and share their experiences and vision.  Speakers already confirmed for GWS include Chase Carey, ... read more

On Wednesday 6 November 2019, the Courthouse Hotel in Oxford Circus played host to the eighth annual ESA Diploma Graduation ceremony, marking the culmination of the Diploma’s most successful ever class. Students from as far afield as Switzerland and Russia were in attendance, as well as ESA Board members, ESA Course Director Peter Raymond and many of the sponsorship industry’s leaders. All 53 students to complete the 2019 ESA Diploma successfully graduated, with the class of ... read more

The European Sponsorship Association and the Marketing Institute of Ireland are delighted to announce a new educational partnership aimed at promoting excellence across the Irish marketing community. As part of the new partnership, ESA and MII will work together to promote the market-leading ESA Diploma in Sponsorship in Ireland in 2020. A range of dedicated events and educational platforms have been tailored for the Irish Diploma in 2020. The ESA Diploma is the foremost sponsorship ... read more

The European Sponsorship Association is pleased to announce its judging panel for the 2020 ESA Awards, marking the home-straight until submissions close. The most prestigious sponsorship prize in Europe, the 2020 ESA Awards will be presented at a gala dinner at London’s The Brewery on Wednesday 26 February 2020. With just a week remaining until the window for awards submissions closes on Friday 11 October, ESA is thrilled to announce a diverse and well-regarded group of industry leaders ... read more

The European Sponsorship Association is immensely saddened to announce that Board Director and widely-respected industry veteran, Toby Hester, has passed away. An innovator with a wealth of experience, Toby was larger than life. Warm, charismatic and big-hearted, he was an active contributor to the global sponsorship community, always wholeheartedly embracing a challenge with his customary energy, dynamism and creativity. A family man with a wry joke and a smile for every occasion, Toby ... read more