10/16/24: New York, USA – Two Circles, the data-driven sports and entertainment business, announced today an agreement to acquire KORE, a market-leading intelligence platform for fans and partnerships, which will enhance the company’s proprietary technologies and support its unique data-driven approach to growing the value of sports and entertainment for fans and rightsholders.

Two Circles will serve more than 700 organizations active in sports and entertainment with the agreed acquisition bringing new clients including NASCAR, The Madison Square Garden Company and 118 of the 154 professional US teams from the “big 5” men’s leagues. Together, the combined organization will offer best-in-class products and services, underpinned by the KORE platform, to grow audiences and revenues in the digital era of sports and entertainment.

Two Circles’ acquisition by Charterhouse Capital Partners at the start of 2024 has provided the springboard for this new phase of growth, which includes the acquisition of content production agency Let It Fly Media in March.

Two Circles’ proprietary market research has forecast that the global sports industry will reach more than $260bn by 2033 with 46% of that annualized revenue growth being generated in North America.*

This latest development demonstrates Two Circles’ commitment to the region, where it has doubled revenues and tripled its employee base over the last year. This growth has resulted in significant wins in the region including the addition of the NFL, PGA of America and Kentucky Derby to its client roster.

Two Circles’ global expansion has also come with new offices in Germany and recent significant client wins including a ten-year contract extension with Golf’s The R&A to grow its ticketing and premium offering; a partnership with World Rugby to grow sponsorship and new direct-to-consumer revenues; and a new long-term contract with UEFA to represent the sponsorship and media rights of the largest commercial program in women’s sports.

Gareth Balch, CEO and Co-Founder, Two Circles said: “This is a significant moment for the sports and entertainment industry. The leading organizations will grow by knowing fans best and having a deeper understanding of where tomorrow’s opportunities will come from. The team at KORE, who we have long admired, have been pioneers in using technology and creating self-serve solutions to help organizations be more efficient in their approach to fan marketing. We believe that combining our businesses can revolutionize the industry we love, creating more opportunities and more revenue for our clients through smarter measurement, richer business insights and more actionable fan data.”

Stewart Lynn, Partner, Serent Capital, said, “Two Circles is the natural home for KORE products. We are excited to see Two Circles fuse KORE’s solutions with its already market-leading services. We know that their incredible team can take KORE products to the next level, delivering more services, data and ultimately value to clients.”

Chris Warren, Charterhouse Partner, added, “Since partnering with Two Circles in January, we have been excited to support Gareth and his team’s progress in implementing their ambitious growth strategy. This latest acquisition will complement Two Circles’ highly successful, data-driven approach and is another successful milestone for the business as it expands in key markets such as the US. We look forward to continuing to leverage our deep expertise in the business services sector and aligned strategic approach with the Two Circles team to drive the company’s international growth strategy.”

Alec Scheiner, Otro Partner, added, “This is as synergistic a combination as you will see in sports: Two Circles has developed a deep knowledge of sports fans across Europe using technology, insights and data and KORE has done the same in North America using its proprietary intelligence platform. Based on our experience operating professional sports businesses, we have conviction that Two Circles’ products and services can provide the entire spectrum of technology, data integration, insights and rights management to sports and entertainment organizations across the globe. It is a very compelling and complimentary combination.”

For more information please reach out to Victoria Tomlinson, Director of Marketing & Communications. Victoria.tomlinson@twocircles.com

*https://twocircles.com/app/uploads/sites/2/2024/03/Sports-Sprint-to-260B-Summary-A.pdf

New York City, NY, 06/27/24 – KORE, the premier provider of partner, fan and business intelligence solutions for the sports and entertainment industry, and Massachusetts-based ice hockey team Worcester Railers HC are thrilled to announce their first–ever partnership. The Railers will leverage KORE’s industry–leading Ticketing platform to optimize their hockey ticket sales and lead distribution operations.  

Eva Rieder
VP, Marketing, KORE
eva.rieder@koresoftware.com

New York City, NY, 05/01/24 – KORE, the sports and entertainment business solution, and Utah-based soccer club Real Salt Lake (“RSL”), which includes Major League Soccer’s RSL side, Utah Royals FC of the National Women’s Soccer League, MLS Next Pro team Real Monarchs and the trio’s America First Field and Zions Bank Stadium venues, are excited to announce the first ever partnership between the two organizations to utilize KORE’s industry leading partnership platform, Sponsorship + Activate to drive deeper efficiencies and insights for RSL.

RSL was prepared to make the move to a Partnership platform that could manage the needs of a professional sports team trying to measure every element of its partnership portfolio. The platform includes a native integration into RSL’s CRM environment for enhanced pipeline management, and in application advance inventory valuation and management, proposal creation and analysis, post-contracting operations such as billing, revenue recognition, and reporting. Finally, the Activate platform will provide RSL asset activation management and ROI measurement for each partner.

Like a growing number of teams, RSL have also engaged with KORE’s advisory group, KORE Planning & Insights (“KPI”), in addition to KORE’s technology platform. KPI will help RSL leverage the KORE Partnership Platform to maximize adoption while driving advanced insights to help the club think more strategically about pricing, packaging, and valuation. Leveraging KORE’s unique set of data, RSL can leverage unique data points to help better understand the industry landscape and market trends.

The partnership highlights key items for both organizations: Union Sports & Entertainment commitment to driving the most advanced insights and processes, and KORE continuing to be the solution of choice for the industry.

John Kimball, President of Real Salt Lake, comments, “KORE is the clear industry leader when it comes to sports business technology and leveraging the data to drive true organizational change. We look forward to utilizing their platform and knowledge of the market to take our Partnership program to the next level.”

KORE’s COO, Adam Grow responded, “This has been a long time coming for KORE, as we have had numerous conversations with RSL over the years. To finally bridge the gap, and become partners, is exciting for all of us. We look forward to helping drive RSL’s partnership group to new heights and deliver immense value into the Club.”

The newly formed partnership between Real Salt Lake and KORE highlights KORE’s ongoing growth within the North American ‘Big 5’ Leagues, and specifically, Major League Soccer (“MLS”). KORE now works with over 70% of all MLS Clubs helping deploy the most advanced data driven practices in the industry for fans, partners, and stakeholders’ insights alike.

About KORE:

KORE is the global leader in engagement marketing solutions. More than 900 brands, venues, and sports organizations trust KORE’s tools and platform as a source of truth to manage assets and measure partnership impact, with real-time insights, across all channels.  Through Sponsorship Management and Evaluation, Ticketing and Fan Engagement, and Data Management and Analytics, KORE’s two-sided network unites corporate sponsors, sponsorship properties, and their fans with solutions that help enhance the fan experience, drive smarter decisions, and enable marketing and operations teams to spend time where it matters. Learn more at KORESoftware.com or follow us LinkedIn or Twitter. 

About Real Salt Lake / Utah Royals FC:

During the first week of January 2022, the RSL compendium of properties was acquired by global sports entrepreneur David Blitzer – who boasts interests in the Philadelphia 76ers (NBA), the New Jersey Devils (NHL), the Cleveland Guardians (baseball) and the Washington Commanders (NFL) – as well as several European soccer entities, including Crystal Palace (England), FC Augsburg (Germany), Estoril (Portugal), ADO Den Haag (Netherlands), Alcorcón (Spain), SK Beveren (Belgium) and Brøndby IF (Denmark). The Blitzer group partners with Utah-based Smith Entertainment Group (SEG), which owns the Utah Jazz (NBA) and the soon-to-arrive Utah Hockey Club (NHL), led by Ryan Smith and including Dwyane Wade, among others.

For the 2024 season and beyond, Real Salt Lake’s Blitzer / Smith ownership groups have partnered to bring the National Women’s Soccer League back to Utah, as Utah Royals FC return in the Spring. Led by Head Coach Amy Rodriguez, President Michelle Hyncik and Sporting Director Kelly Cousins, URFC aims to seize upon the success the NWSL enjoyed during its first iteration on the Wasatch Front from 2018-20 and grow the game to even greater heights going forward. Led by visionary sports business entrepreneur Jess Gelman – the founder of the Sloan Sports Analytics Institute, along with innovative NBA executive Daryl Morey – Utah Royals FC blazes new trails in 2024.

Real Salt Lake recently kicked off its 20th Major League Soccer season, its third full season under Head Coach Pablo Mastroeni, who led the Utah side on an interim basis for the final 100 days in 2021. RSL is the lone Western Conference side to have advanced to the Audi MLS Cup Playoffs in each of the 2021, 2022 and 2023 campaigns, amassing 13 postseason appearances in the last 16 years, as well as on five occasions in the last six seasons.  

RSL’s MLS Cup 2009 victory marked the state of Utah’s only major professional championship in nearly 40 years, the title preceding an historic run to the 2010/11 CONCACAF Champions League Final. Buoyed by a passionate base boasting several thousand season ticket holders and opening its permanent home in Sandy just over 15 years ago; since October, 2008, RSL’s 167-60-76 (W-L-T) mark at America First Field – home of the “RioT” Supporters Group umbrella – equates to a 1.90 points per game average and a 0.677 win pct, one of the truly amazing value proposition in North American sporting landscape today.

In 2015, the club expanded its development pyramid with the addition of Real Monarchs SLC, one of several MLS-operated clubs playing in the USL Championship, the United States’ Division II setup.  The Monarchs boast a pair of titles in its brief history, as the 2017 USL Championship Regular-Season champions, later winning the USL Championship title in 2019. For the 2022 season and beyond, Real Monarchs compete in the newly-launched “MLS NEXT Pro” as part of a joint United States and Canada endeavor to complete the professional player pathway by connecting youth academies in MLS NEXT to first teams in Major League Soccer.

The entire competitive RSL setup, which includes nearly 70 players representing the RSL Academy’s U-15 and U-17 teams, calls the expansive Zions Bank Training Center in Herriman, Utah their daily training home. With five world-class grass fields, two indoor turf fields, a residential dormitory, the STEM-based RSL Academy High School and the 5,000-seat Zions Bank Stadium located on a 42-acre campus, Utah’s sporting future is bright.

The RSL Community Foundation was established in 2016, created with the goals of being active in the community year-round, utilizing the popularity and reach of RSL, the Royals, the Monarchs and the Academy in promoting health and wellness in children throughout the region, engaging supporters of soccer to raise funds and volunteer time for various local initiatives.

For more information, please contact:

Mandy Savage
Content Marketing Manager, KORE
amanda.savage@koresoftware.com

Trey Fitz-Gerald
VP Communications, RSL/Utah Royals FC
trey.fitzgerald@RSL.com

London – 12 March 2024 –

KORE, the premier provider of partner, fan and business intelligence solutions for the sports and entertainment industry, is pleased to announce Bristol Sport Ltd. as the latest UK client to adopt the Sponsorship and Partner Engagement platform.

This milestone reinforces KORE’s commitment to delivering cutting-edge solutions to sports organisations worldwide.

This is a direct result of KORE’s recent acquisition of Sports Alliance, a digital marketing solutions provider, as Bristol Sport has maintained a successful partnership with Sports Alliance since 2015, using a data-driven approach to engaging fans and developing insights.

Bristol Sport is a multi-sport organisation comprised of five professional teams – Bristol City men and women’s football, Bristol Bears men and women’s rugby and Bristol Flyers men’s basketball. The group was established by Stephen Lansdown CBE in 2012 to inspire participation in sport in Bristol and the wider communities.

In 2023, recognising the need for a new approach to sponsorship management, Bristol Sport Ltd. integrated KORE’s Sponsorship and Partner Engagement platform into its operations. This strategic move signifies the organisation’s commitment to staying at the forefront of sports technology, leveraging and building on their existing data-driven insights to enhance their sponsorship strategies.

“The Bristol Sport group model is unique in the UK. Our objective is to move towards a more data-focused operation and adopting KORE’s Sponsorship and Partner Engagement platform was a natural progression as we strive to streamline our sponsorship processes and maximise revenue potential,” said Bristol Sport Commercial Director, Sarah Farrar.

Matt Roberts, KORE’s Sr. Director of Customer Strategy & Success (EMEA) said: “Bristol Sport Ltd. will use the Sponsorship and Partner Engagement platform as a centralised source of truth for all their assets, rate cards, contracts, and payments. This partnership will not only enhance their sponsorship management but also empower them to sell more sponsorships and contribute significantly to their overall success.”

This collaboration between KORE and Bristol Sport Ltd. is a testament to the transformative power of data-driven solutions to optimise results and streamline business processes and both parties look forward to continuing to develop and grow the partnership.

About Bristol Sport:
Founded in 2012, Bristol Sport Ltd. stands as a prominent force in the sports industry, with a commitment to excellence and innovation. As a part of the stable of sports companies owned by Stephen Lansdown CBE, Bristol Sport has made significant strides in promoting professional sports access and encouraging participation across diverse age and capability ranges. Since its inception, Bristol Sport has grown into a dynamic conglomerate, comprising five teams in professional football, rugby, and basketball. Notably, the company officially launched its headquarters at Ashton Gate Stadium in 2014, solidifying its presence in the sporting landscape.

About KORE:
KORE is the global leader in engagement marketing solutions. More than 900 brands, venues, and sports organisations trust KORE’s tools and platform as a source of truth to manage assets and measure partnership impact, with real-time insights, across all channels.

Through Sponsorship Management and Evaluation, Ticketing and Fan Engagement, and Data Management and Analytics, KORE’s two-sided network unites corporate sponsors, sponsorship properties, and their fans with solutions that help enhance the fan experience, drive smarter decisions, and enable marketing and operations teams to spend time where it matters. Learn more at KORESoftware.com or follow us LinkedIn or Twitter.

For more information, please contact:

Mandy Savage
Content Marketing Manager, KORE
amanda.savage@koresoftware.com

New York City, NY, December 13, 2023 – KORE, the leading sports and entertainment business solution, and the Philadelphia Union, Philadelphia’s Major League Soccer team, are excited to announce the parties have expanded their partnership. The two groups have previously partnered together for several years on the Corporate Partnership business with the Union leveraging KORE’s Sponsorship + Activate platforms to great success.

In the upcoming phase of the collaboration, the emphasis will shift towards enhancing the Fan Engagement aspect of the Union’s operations. This involves incorporating KORE’s Fan Engagement + Helix platform along with KORE’s Data Warehouse & Analytics (DWA) ecosystem. This advanced platform is designed to optimize the club’s capacities and enhance overall understanding of fan dynamics. KORE will seamlessly integrate with the Union’s existing native Salesforce ecosystem, simplifying the club’s data management and analysis processes.

In addition, to KORE’s technology platform the Union have engaged with KORE’s industry leading consultancy group, KORE Planning & Insights (“KPI”), to develop a state-of-the-art premium sales lead scoring system, designed to revolutionize the Philadelphia Union’s approach to lead management and drive higher conversion rates for premium sales. KPI and the Union will also focus on implementing a waitlist scoring feature to offer a smarter and more efficient methodology to prioritize access to high-demand products and services.

The partnership highlights key items for both organizations: Philadelphia Union’s commitment to driving the most advanced insights and processes, and KORE continuing to be the solution of choice for the industry.

Kyle Mathiot, Vice President of Business Analytics at the Philadelphia Union, states, “KORE has been a critical partner in helping shape our corporate partnership business. With all our success to date, we felt continuing to expand our relationship with them via their Fan Data platform was an easy decision. We look forward to driving deeper fan insights into our business strategy.”

In response, KORE’s COO, Adam Grow said, “Expanding our partnership with the Philadelphia Union is exciting and continues to validate our approach to building strong relationships with our customer partners. The projects with KPI are designed to streamline the Union’s sales approach, drive higher conversions more efficiently, and enhance experiences for all the team’s fanbase.”

The collaboration between the Philadelphia Union and KORE highlights the increasing significance of data-driven approaches in the realm of sports and entertainment. By embracing KORE’s cutting-edge solutions, the Union is poised to deliver an upgraded and individually tailored experience for fans, partners, and stakeholders alike.

About KORE:

KORE is the global leader in engagement marketing solutions. More than 900 brands, venues, and sports organizations trust KORE’s tools and platform as a source of truth to manage assets and measure partnership impact, with real-time insights, across all channels. 

Through Sponsorship Management and Evaluation, Ticketing and Fan Engagement, and Data Management and Analytics, KORE’s two-sided network unites corporate sponsors, sponsorship properties, and their fans with solutions that help enhance the fan experience, drive smarter decisions, and enable marketing and operations teams to spend time where it matters. Learn more at KORESoftware.com or follow us LinkedIn or Twitter. 

View the official press release here.

For more information, please contact:

Eva Rieder
VP Marketing, KORE
eva.rieder@koresoftware.com

London – September 26, 2023 – KORE, the leading engagement marketing platform for the sports and entertainment industry, is proud to announce its newest joint-client with Sports Alliance and first-ever Netherlands-based customer, PSV Eindhoven. This milestone marks a significant step in KORE’s expansion into the European market and reinforces the company’s commitment to delivering cutting-edge solutions to sports organisations worldwide. This development is a direct result of KORE’s recent acquisition of digital marketing solutions provider Sports Alliance and the first Sports Alliance client to expand into the KORE platform.

PSV Eindhoven, a prestigious football club founded in 1913 and based in Eindhoven, has earned a well-deserved reputation for excellence on and off the field. As a top-tier Dutch Eredivisie team, PSV’s ambitions include being a perennial contender for the Dutch championship and striving for UEFA Champions League glory, all while fostering a top sports climate with professionalism at its core.

KORE’s partnership with PSV is a testament to the strong relationships forged by the Sports Alliance team. This landmark collaboration will see the integration of KORE’s Activate software into PSV’s operations, empowering the club to manage its partnerships business in ways previously unattainable. This landmark deal, spanning five years, represents a true partnership between KORE and PSV, aimed at elevating partner activation management and optimising sponsorship revenue streams.

“We are thrilled to welcome PSV Eindhoven as KORE’s first Netherlands-based client,” said Matt Roberts, Sr. Director, Customer Strategy & Success (EMEA) at KORE. “This is not only a significant milestone for KORE’s global expansion but also a testament to the great collaboration between PSV and Sports Alliance historically to bring us to this point. PSV’s commitment marks the first instance of KORE ‘software’ cross-selling with a Sports Alliance customer, and it exemplifies our unwavering dedication to delivering exceptional solutions to our valued partners.”

Activate, KORE’s premier asset management software, will enable PSV to seamlessly manage its activation assets and strategically cultivate and nurture partnerships like never before. With its robust and intuitive features, Activate provides PSV with an unprecedented level of control and insight into its partnership ecosystem, unlocking new opportunities for growth and revenue generation.

“We are enthusiastic about our collaboration with KORE” said Koen van Haastert. “Activate’s capabilities align perfectly with our vision of becoming a frontrunner in fan engagement and partnership management. This partnership will enable us to maintain the highest levels of professionalism on and off the field, and we look forward to achieving remarkable milestones together.”

About KORE:

KORE is the global leader in engagement marketing solutions. More than 900 brands, venues, and sports organizations trust KORE’s tools and platform as a source of truth to manage assets and measure partnership impact, with real-time insights, across all channels. 

Through Sponsorship Management and Evaluation, Ticketing and Fan Engagement, and Data Management and Analytics, KORE’s two-sided network unites corporate sponsors, sponsorship properties, and their fans with solutions that help enhance the fan experience, drive smarter decisions, and enable marketing and operations teams to spend time where it matters. Learn more at KORESoftware.com or follow us LinkedIn or Twitter. 

About Sports Alliance:

Sports Alliance was acquired by KORE in 2022.

Founded in London UK in 2002, Sports Alliance serves over 140 sports brands across the UK, Europe and the Americas. Sports Alliance helps rights-holders use data, technology, analysis and marketing insight to enhance fan experience and revenue generation. Sports Alliance provides end-to-end fan relationship management tools and solutions in Marketing & CRM, Digital, Loyalty and Commercial. Our mission is to personalize sport for every individual fan, current and future.

View the official press release here.

For more information, please contact:

Eva Rieder
VP Marketing, KORE
eva.rieder@koresoftware.com

New York City, NY, 9/19/23– KORE, the leading sports and entertainment business solution, Orlando City Soccer Club (OCSC) and Orlando Pride are excited to announce their new partnership. Together the clubs will implement KORE’s industry leading data platform for City and Pride’s business, driving maximum efficiencies and insights across their organization, leveraging KORE’s platform to create maximum flexibility while minimizing effort within their business operations. Both parties will collaborate to onboard City and Pride onto KORE’s industry leading Fan and Partnership ecosystems. The partnership signals significant milestones for both organizations: City and Pride as an industry leading sports operations, and KORE as the solution of choice for the industry.

A central component of this collaboration is the integration of KORE’s Fan Engagement + Helix platform on top of KORE’s Data Warehouse & Analytics (DWA) ecosystem. This integration delivers the most advanced Fan Engagement platform available, maximizing the club’s capabilities and elevating overall fan intelligence. KORE will seamlessly integrate with the club’s existing native Salesforce ecosystem, streamlining data management and analysis for the organization.

The partnership culminates with the implementation of KORE’s Sponsorship + Activate package, which empowers the clubs with an end-to-end partnership management ecosystem. This comprehensive suite of tools and resources will enable both City and Pride to optimize their sponsorship strategies and provide partners with unprecedented value and engagement opportunities.

Chris Kamke, chief strategy officer for Orlando City and Orlando Pride, states, “KORE offers the most advanced, yet simplistic business platform to help us streamline our business while driving the most advanced insights. It was a clear decision on how to take our business to the next level.”

In response, KORE’s COO, Adam Grow said, “We’re excited to work with Orlando City SC and Orlando Pride to help them drive their business forward. Their goals align with the value KORE delivers for our Partners on a day-to-day basis. Together, we continue to drive the industry forward in a new era of success for OCSC and the Pride.”

The partnership between Orlando City SC/Orlando Pride and KORE underscores the growing importance of data-driven strategies in sports and entertainment. As the club embraces KORE’s innovative solutions, supporters, partners, and stakeholders can look forward to an enhanced and more personalized experience.

About KORE:
KORE is the global leader in engagement marketing solutions. More than 900 brands, venues, and sports organizations trust KORE’s tools and platform as a source of truth to manage assets and measure partnership impact, with real-time insights, across all channels. 

Through Sponsorship Management and Evaluation, Ticketing and Fan Engagement, and Data Management and Analytics, KORE’s two-sided network unites corporate sponsors, sponsorship properties, and their fans with solutions that help enhance the fan experience, drive smarter decisions, and enable marketing and operations teams to spend time where it matters. Learn more at KORESoftware.com or follow us LinkedIn or Twitter. 

About Orlando City SC & Orlando Pride:
Orlando City SC joined Major League Soccer (MLS) as the league’s 21st franchise in November 2013, becoming the first MLS team in the Southeast. The Lions began league play in March 2015, and in 2017, moved into its privately-owned downtown soccer stadium. In 2022, Orlando City SC re-launched OCB as a founding member of MLS NEXT Pro to bridge the gap between its successful youth development academy and the First Team.

In November 2015, the Club announced its intention to bring professional women’s soccer to Central Florida and launched Orlando Pride in the National Women’s Soccer League. The Pride began league play in April 2016 with a star-studded team of FIFA World Cup Champions. For more information, visit orlandocitysc.com or orlando-pride.com.

View the official press release here. 

For more information, please contact:

Eva Rieder
VP Marketing, KORE
eva.rieder@koresoftware.com

Jackie Maynard
Sr. Director of Communications & PR, Orlando City & Orlando Pride
jmaynard@orlandocitysc.com

2022-23 NBA Sponsorship Spend Up Slightly

Basketball’s Social Media Footprint Leads U.S. Sports

NEW YORK, May 10, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — KORE has released its 2022-23 NBA Market Intelligence Report looking at key sponsorship insights and social media values, including the top sponsorship market sectors, the NBA’s overall social footprint, the top NBA athletes on social media, and the top ten brands earning social media value through NBA partnerships. The report looked at the NBA season through the first round of the playoffs. 

“Overall, we’ve found the NBA sponsorship marketplace is thriving, and the league is second in the United States behind only the NFL in total sponsorship spend,” said KORE Head of Sponsorship Intelligence RJ Kraus. “However, when it comes to social media followers and total engagement, the NBA is first among sports in the U.S.”

According to the KORE NBA report, overall sponsorship is up +2% year-over-year, and up +11% from 2019. Sponsorship was led by the financial sector, comprising nearly +20% of the market, with food and beverage at 15%, and technology at 11%. While the overall value of sponsorships was up, the number of deals per team was down -41%, indicating brands were focused on doing fewer deals, but signing longer terms with larger annual spends.

On the social side, basketball’s footprint encompassed more than 2.5B followers and more than 45B video views over the last year – the largest among U.S. sports. Video viewership has seen a massive increase (+80%) due to new video formats. Among the different social media platforms, Instagram dominates with 80% of engagement and 50% of brand value, but Twitter holds a third of the brand value, better than in other sports.

The playoffs have created extra interest in the league, driving 10M new social followers for the first three weeks of the postseason. 

The biggest value drivers across social media are the league and teams. Combined they drive nearly 95% of the adjusted ad value. Among teams, the Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers dominate social media, combining for 22% of the total followers and 33.5% of total engagement.

Nike leads all brands, earning the most value through social media NBA partnerships, followed by Google, State Farm, KIA, and Crypto.com.

Lebron James tops the social media values among players, accounting for 23% of all brand value, followed by Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, and Devin Booker through the first three weeks of the playoffs.

To see the complete KORE 2022-23 NBA Market Intelligence Report reach out to KORE, here.

KORE, now including Hookit, is the only single-source solution to offer a full suite of management, measurement, and optimization solutions for buyers and sellers of sponsorship, marketers, and organizations looking to better engage with their audiences. 

Annually, KORE releases a number of sport-, league-, and team-specific Intel reports, case studies, and white papers. KORE’s next report will be released in late May and will examine the state of sponsorship in golf.

ABOUT KORE:
KORE is the global leader in engagement marketing solutions. More than 900 brands, venues, and sports organizations trust KORE’s tools and platform as a source of truth to manage assets and measure partnership impact, with real-time insights, across all channels. 

Through Sponsorship Management and Evaluation, Ticketing and Fan Engagement, and Data Management and Analytics, KORE’s two-sided network unites corporate sponsors, sponsorship properties, and their fans with solutions that help enhance the fan experience, drive smarter decisions, and enable marketing and operations teams to spend time where it matters. Learn more at KORESoftware.com or follow us LinkedIn or Twitter. 

Contact: Eva Rieder, eva.rieder@koresoftware.com

Click here for the official press release. 

KORE Releases State of the Industry Report

Financial, Food & Beverage, and Technology Sectors Top Sponsorship Spend

Nike, Adidas, and Emirates Top Brands for Social Media Sponsorship Value, and Cristiano Ronaldo and Eileen Gu Lead Athletes Social Media Value

NEW YORK, April 18, 2023 – KORE has released its 2022/23 State of the Industry Report, featuring an annual review of sports marketing, sponsorship, and social media trends. In 2022, sports-related sponsorship spending increased +12% for the year. However, overall sponsorship deals were down slightly, as brands became more selective about who they choose to work with and spent more time quantifying the impact of those sponsorships. 

In 2022, social media sponsorships saw overall engagement increase, with more effort on quality posts focused on subject matter and type driving engagement, while focusing less on overall quantity of posts. Branded social media posts and views were up for brands year-over-year, demonstrating the importance of understanding what content drives successful partnerships. 

“The work we do with hundreds of rights holders and brands across the globe allows us to surface really valuable insights throughout the industry, that impacts the market and helps give our clients a competitive edge,” said KORE CEO Jason Fletcher. “Where it really gets exciting is when we see how our clients begin to innovate with this type of intelligence.” 

Looking at the global state of sponsorship spend, KORE determined that the average annual deal size in 2022 was $326k versus $273k in 2019 (+23%) and $317k in 2021 (+12%). The average deal length increased to 3.3 years, indicating that brands and rights holders have shifted focus to more long-term objective setting and planning.  

The big five North American leagues experienced similar trends in terms of increased sponsorship income through fewer deals. According to KORE data, spending is up +6%, while deals are down -4% year-over-year. Compared to 2019, spending is up +14% despite the number of deals being down by -5%. 

KORE’s State of the Industry Report also tracked the top sponsorship categories, which sectors were spending more and less over the last year, as well as sponsorship asset trends and more. In 2022, the Financial sector led sponsorship spending for the fourth consecutive year. The other top sectors include Food & Beverage, Communications & Media, Retail, and Technology.  

Social media drives significant exposure and value for brands, creating more than $12B in total adjusted ad value (AAV) across social platforms. In 2022, KORE tracked an -8% dip in brand value from 2021 and fewer partnership deals created, but a +39% increase over pre-pandemic levels in 2019.  

Branded posts, engagement, and views were all up for brands year-over-year and versus 2019, which demonstrates understanding what types of content such as video, images, text mentions, hashtags, keywords, and various topic analysis are key insights for successful partnerships. 

Among all sports, global football had 54% of all social media followers, 53% of social engagement, and 42% of social brand value.  

Instagram videos were the most engaging form of content in 2022, rising above the other platforms including TikTok, YouTube, Instagram (IG), Facebook, and Twitter. Instagram continued to be the most engaging platform for four years straight. 

The brands that benefitted most from partnerships in social media in 2022 included Nike, Adidas, Emirates, Puma, and Red Bull. The report also named the top 30 best promoted brands as well as top male and female athletes on social media. On the male side, global football stars Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, and Neymar da Silva lead the list, while skier Eileen Gu, global footballer Alisha Lehmann, and tennis great Serena Williams top the women’s list. 

KORE’s data footprint is the largest in the industry. The company’s sponsorship management data perspective covers more than 70% of major North American sport and entertainment properties and globally more than $52 billion in sponsorship spend. KORE actively tracks more than 500,000 entities across sport and entertainment on social media platforms, as well as more than 32-billion fan connections. 

The complete KORE 2022 State of the Industry Report is available here. 

KORE, now including Hookit, is the only single-source solution to offer a full suite of management, measurement, and optimization solutions for buyers and sellers of sponsorship, marketers, and organizations looking to better engage with their audiences.  

Annually, KORE releases several sport-, league-, and team-specific Intel reports, case studies, and white papers. KORE’s next comprehensive report will be released at the end of the year, focused on brands, teams, leagues and athletes on the rise. Shorter industry sector reports will be released throughout 2023. 

ABOUT KORE:
KORE is the global leader in engagement marketing solutions. More than 900 brands, venues, and sports organizations trust KORE’s tools and platform as a source of truth to manage assets and measure partnership impact, with real-time insights, across all channels. 

Through Sponsorship Management and Evaluation, Ticketing and Fan Engagement, and Data Management and Analytics, KORE’s two-sided network unites corporate sponsors, sponsorship properties, and their fans with solutions that help enhance the fan experience, drive smarter decisions, and enable marketing and operations teams to spend time where it matters. Learn more at KORESoftware.com or follow us LinkedIn or Twitter. 

Contact: Eva Rieder, eva.rieder@koresoftware.com

Click here for the official press release.