caytoo’s analyst team reveals their Top 5 sponsorship deals or activations in October in terms of the ideas they provide for other rights holders

Our Top 5, in no particular order, aren’t necessarily the biggest or most high-profile. Each one has been selected as it represents best practice or an important lesson for other rights holders and their potential sponsors.

Media-friendly activation
Kikkoman x The Grand Sumo Tournament

Kikkoman’s sponsorship of the Grand Sumo Tournament at London’s Royal Albert Hall provided a major viral moment when the champion, Hoshoryu Tomokatsu, was awarded a giant Kikkoman soy sauce bottle. A video of the award ceremony has since gone viral, driving social reach and giving Kikkoman free brand visibility. The activation not only showcased Kikkoman’s playful side but also reinforced its cultural authenticity and category leadership as Japan’s most iconic soy sauce brand.

Lesson: in full article

Providing direct value to fans
Shoorah x Millwall FC

English soccer club Millwall FC have launched a new initiative offering free mental wellbeing support to its fanbase in partnership with the mental health and wellbeing app Shoorah. The initial two-year partnership provides all Millwall season ticket holders and members with a free subscription to the premium version of Shoorah’s app, which usually costs £44.99 per year.

The best sponsorships benefit all three key stakeholders – sponsor, rights holder and the fanbase/audience. Too often, however, the latter group are ignored but this is a simple and straightforward way for fans to get an entirely free product/benefit from the sponsor.

Lesson: in full article

Thinking creatively to reinforce category leadership
Krispy Kreme x NASCAR

NASCAR and its Xfinity Series TV broadcast partner, The CW, have combined to create a sponsorship package for donut brand Krispy Kreme whereby CW called out the donut brand as presenting the “donut” burnout that the winning driver does after winning a race.

Lesson: in full article

Showcasing category leadership and selling product
Mattel x Museum of Modern Art

A major part of the five-year partnership between the toy brand and the leading cultural institution involves launching seven products from Mattel’s flagship franchise brands (e.g. Barbie, Hot Wheels, Uno etc.), each inspired by and ‘reinterpreting’ a masterpiece from one of MoMA’s collections.

For example, one of the products is a “Barbie x Vincent van Gogh”, a collectible doll inspired by Van Gogh’s The Starry Night painting. The Barbie doll features a gown patterned after the painting’s swirling skies, a crescent moon detail in her curls, and sculpted heels inspired by the landscape’s rolling hills.

The idea of the partnership is to merge contemporary art, design and playing in a different way to attract a new audience for both parties, particularly for MOMA. The activation also supports Mattel’s sponsorship of the Family Art Lab, an interactive space where kids and adults experiment, play, and create as they explore ideas and techniques of modern and contemporary art.

Lesson: in full article

 Introducing sponsors to other businesses
Ebury x Olympique Lyonnais

A key part of the deal between the London-based fintech firm, which specialises in cross-border payments, and the French soccer club involves Ebury participating in key networking and business events organized by the club through the latter’s OL Business Team, a network connecting corporate partners and regional enterprises. One of the firm’s aims is to expand its strategic footprint in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, where Lyon plays a key economic role.

Lesson: in full article

Summary

All these sponsorship deals in October provide an example of the great utility sponsorship provides which all rights holders and brands can look to emulate to benefit both parties. This is particularly the case for rights holders who can come up with their own version to spark a conversation with potential sponsors.