True

sports

Ant International appoints US basketball star Sabrina Ionescu as global ambassador

ai alibaba group ant group kol sports By Staff Reporters

The four-time WNBA All-Star will boost Ant's global footprint and youth appeal beyond Asia.

IMG retires Mailman sports digital marketing brand

img mailman sports sports marketing By Robert Sawatzky

The Asian-based team will continue operations as the backbone of IMG’s global digital business, just as the NBA and other top sports billings return to China.

Why Airwallex takes up sports to challenge B2B marketing norms

airwallex arsenal lando norris mclaren sponsorship sports By Robert Sawatzky

The fintech firm’s latest ad, timed for the F1 and Ryder Cup, sees McLaren driver Lando Norris taking a swing at legacy banking headaches.

Dentsu expands global Sports & Entertainment business

canneslions2025 Dentsu entertainment sports By Staff Reporters

Names Yoshinobu Ise new global head of the division and expands anime business to China, SEA and North America.

Heineken trusts Korean football fans with keys to unmanned bars

activations beer football heineken korea sports By Ad Nut

An activation in Seoul sees Korean fans ordering, paying for, and pulling their own pints without bar owners or security present. Just to be able to watch live football.

How Asia is redefining football fandom for the digital age: Report

china football mailman sports By Staff Reporters

The sport’s key players—from clubs to leagues—are using targeted social media strategies and exclusive content formats to drive growth in China, according to Mailman’s annual Red Card report.

STB partners with NBA to attract fans from the region

basketball coldplay nba singapore tourism board sports stb warner music By Staff Reporters

The Singapore Tourism Board seeks to make the city state an attractive destination for sport fans, as it looks further afield to boost its ambitious goals for inbound visitors.

Japan Airlines campaign ropes in Liverpool football stars

airlines football jal japan airlines jellyfish liverpool fc sports By Staff Reporters

Created by Jellyfish, the campaign is focused on key markets including Singapore and Thailand.

Is brand sponsorship enough for Asian sports?

branding milo sports sports marketing By Preston Tan

As brands embrace grassroots support and local sports initiatives, the VP of Toyota Motor Asia explores how investments beyond ambassadorship are essential.

What it takes to drive successful sports sponsorship

f1 OMD omg singapore sports By Gina McKinnon

With the F1 Grand Prix wrapping up in Singapore this past weekend, OMG's Gina McKinnon unpacks what it takes to bring brand and sport partnerships alive—and how to do it successfully.

Is it time to leave the fitness cult? Virgin Active thinks so

sports wellness By Staff Reporters

The provocative global campaign will run in Thailand, Singapore, and Australia in the APAC region, as well as in the UK, Italy, and South Africa.

ID Mobile taps into football transfer deadline by flagging up customer 'signings'

football sports By Marianne Calnan

The campaign was created by Trouble Maker.

Will Olympic glory translate to more brand investment for women's sport?

gender sponsorship sports sports marketing By Matthew Keegan

A women-dominated Olympics is fuelling optimism in increased brand endorsements for women's sport. Campaign explores why marketers who have the foresight to invest in female athletes now will reap the biggest rewards.

How Chinese brands are leveraging sports marketing to go global

alibaba chagee sports sports marketing By Minnie Wang

Chinese brands such as HeyTea, Chagee, and Tecno are joining Alibaba in targeted sponsorships and creative collaborations abroad.

Alibaba's AI-powered tribute to female athletes shines at Olympics premiere

ai alibaba ogilvy sports the work By Ad Nut

The eight-minute long film is poignant, tear-jerking, inspiring, and one of Ad Nut's favourite picks of the year yet.

A pivotal summer ahead for sports in Japan

japan mailman marketing sports By Tom Elsden

The VP at 160over90 writes about the bright future of Japanese sport and the country's emerging status as a global sports powerhouse.

Paralympics: Opportunities and lessons for brands

dei sponsorship sports sports marketing By Matthew Keegan

The Paris Paralympics look set to achieve record-breaking audience reach and ad sales. Campaign explores the unique opportunity it offers brands, sponsors, and advertisers to make a meaningful impact during the main event and beyond.

Toyota set to end $600 million Olympic sponsorship deal

sponsorship sports By Staff Reporters

The Japanese giant is seeking to end its nine-year tenure with the Games, after becoming the first automaker in the world to sign a top-tier sponsorship contract in 2015.

How brands are going for gold at the Paris Olympics

sponsorship sports sports marketing By Matthew Keegan

Campaign explores how Asian brands are maximising ad spend at the mega sporting event, the keys to a winning marketing strategy, and the best platforms to engage young fans.

Formula 1 Shanghai: A watershed event for brand sponsors

f1 formula one shanghai sports By Gavin Hadley

With Shanghai native Zhou Guanyu in the race, this could be the kickoff to even more fierce positioning among Chinese brands.

Why Disney, Fox and Warner Bros. Discovery are teaming up on sports — and the challenges they will face

disney sports streaming warner bros discovery By Alison Weissbrot

Pooling together resources will allow the companies to more aggressively compete with deep-pocketed tech giants, but they risk cannibalising their own linear businesses, according to analysts and media buyers.

Don’t expect sponsors to flee pro golf after the PGA Tour-LIV merger, say experts

sports By Diana Bradley

One has a 'gut feeling' most people won’t care about the merger, while others say sponsors will have to make tough decisions.

‘Havas Play’ launches worldwide

gaming havas sports By Minnie Wang

The new entertainment, sports, technology, and fandom offering aims to leverage Vivendi ownership and replaces Havas Sports and Havas Sports & Entertainment across all markets.

Broadcasters in India are not offering the value we believe our property is worth: Ian Holmes, F1

broadcast f1 india sports By Raahil Chopra

F1’s director for media rights and content creation discusses why the sport doesn’t have a broadcaster in India, the launch of F1 TV, Drive to Survive, and more.

How OTT networks are revolutionising sports media and brand sponsorships

media ott sports streaming By Shawn Lim

Sports organisations such as One Championship and K-League are redefining the world of sports media by creating new over-the-top (OTT) strategies. We explore how they are leveraging tech to deliver sports content directly to consumers through digital platforms.

Reflecting on Qatar: How did brands navigate the most controversial World Cup ever?

football sports By James English

Now that the final whistle's been blown, a quick look back on this year's tournament.

J&T Express ropes in Lionel Messi as global brand ambassador

football sports By Nikita Mishra

The Asian delivery giant has plans of expanding its global network and establishing itself as a one-stop ecommerce specialist in the logistics supply chain.

Is the World Cup worth the investment for brands?

football sponsorship sports sports marketing By Alison Weissbrot

Between human rights violations, a corruption scandal and a global recession, the 2022 FIFA World Cup soccer tournament poses a tricky balancing act for advertisers.

What are Chinese sponsors hoping to get out of the World Cup?

china football sponsorship sports sports marketing By Matthew Keegan

Chinese brands are the biggest-spending sponsors at the 2022 Qatar World Cup. But with a tournament dogged by controversy, will it deliver the results brands are hoping for?

Despite lockdowns, the China sports-fashion industry continues to diversify

lululemon podcast retail sports By Bryce Whitwam

SHANGHAI ZHAN PODCAST: China’s rise of both ‘athleisure’ and ‘athluxury’ in sports fashion is a direct result of the level of sports maturity and a greater appetite for higher quality, according to Lululemon China’s digital brand director, Gavin Lum.

The star of this half-time basketball show is…. a cleaning equipment

basketball japan nba nissan sports tbwa TBWA Hakuhodo By Ad Nut

For a Nissan activation, TBWA/Hakuhodo produces an unexpectedly squeaky-clean performance.

Why Booking.com is betting heavily on sports travel

sports travel By Eularie Saldanha

Booking.com's country head for India, Sri Lanka, Maldives, and Indonesia talks about sports tourism, a recently launched brand campaign and more.

How should marketers approach the Qatar World Cup?

football sponsorship sports sports marketing By Surekha Ragavan

With rising global inflation and economic uncertainty, Campaign explores the opportunities and challenges facing brands as one of the busiest times of the year collides with a major sporting event.

Mondelez campaign in Indonesia spotlights unknown football coach

football Leo Burnett mondelez Publicis sports By Ad Nut

Leo Burnett Indonesia decided to highlight the noble story of Bang Aji, a relatively unknown coach who paved the way for kids who couldn't afford formal football training.

Behind Oppo's tech and data strategy for sports sponsorship

data oppo sports tech By Shawn Lim

Dylan Yu, marketing director for Singapore at Oppo, on how the electronics brand is rethinking its sports sponsorship strategy by customising targeted content.

Adidas displays Rick-and-Morty-style inflatable heads in London

adidas football london sports By Staff Reporters

To mark the release of the Adidas X Speedportal boots, giant inflatable heads of Mo Salah and Vivianne Miedema can be seen floating across London.

Uefa and Pepsi Max line up Becky Hill for show at Women’s Euro final

football sports By Shauna Lewis

Parent company PepsiCo has an extensive relationship with women’s football.

Why StarHub believes streaming is the future of live sports

ott sports starhub streaming By Shawn Lim

StarHub will offer the English Premier League competition for six seasons, having entered into an exclusive agreement with the Premier League earlier in 2022.

Grace Blue launches sports, media & entertainment practice

entertainment sports By Staff Reporters

Tim Palmer will lead the practice from London, working closely with colleagues in APAC.

ASA bans Adidas ads for offensive nudity

adidas gender sports By Charlotte Rawlings

Two posters and one tweet contained images of women’s bare breasts to promote the brand’s range of sports bras.

Leveraging esports fandom through storytelling

campaign360 esports marketing sports By Minnie Wang

CAMPAIGN360: Panellists shared strategy tips for brands through authentic content and innovate use of channels.

M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment partners Getty for women’s sport exhibition

mc saatchi sports By Fayola Douglas

The show explores how women’s sport has been captured over the past 50 years.

The many roles brands can play in elevating women’s sport

diversity international womens day iwd sports By Lesley Murphy

Brands are often uncertain about how to truly leverage women’s sport for the good of business and community. Two leaders at CSM have a few suggestions.

Panda mascot, Eileen Gu among winners in Olympics brand fest

influencers sports sports marketing By Minnie Wang

Brands are snapping up deals with star athletes and the Games' impossibly cute panda in a partnership frenzy this season.

Teeing up your brand for sports partnerships

sponsorship sport sports By Penelope Siraj

The 11 questions every brand should ask when preparing to team up in sports, according to this R3 media consultant.

Tokyo Olympics inspires outstanding and outlandish art

inspiration station sports By Surekha Ragavan

INSPIRATION STATION: These art pieces and installations show that the world’s (second) biggest sporting event can inspire humans and robots alike.

Why sports collaborations could be a goldmine for luxury

adidas luxury sports By Yaling Jiang

Chinese consumers are seeing an influx of sports collaborations from niche categories like skiing and camping, and there are good reasons behind why. Photo: Courtesy of adidas.

OMG sends sports unit Fuse onto the pitch in APAC

apac entertainment omg omnicom media group sports By Rahul Sachitanand

Fuse's former strategy director, Jonathan Drakes, will helm the sports and entertainment practice in the region, with Tuborg signed up as first client.

What sweaty people can teach us about advertising

advertising marketing sports By Guy Futcher

VMLY&R Singapore's ECD explains that sport has always had the answers, even when he doesn't know what the questions are—including in this unprecedented year.

Drop the ‘girl power’ shtick when marketing women’s sport

gender sport sports women By Rebecca Benson

Now, more than ever, brands must help to normalise women’s sport.

AC Milan's mission to redefine the sport experience

experience football marketing sports By Oliver McAteer

The club's chief revenue officer discusses its partnership with JAY-Z's Roc Nation, its new stadium, and accelerating brand transformation amid global crises.

While many live sports are still paused, your sports strategy shouldn't be

sponsorship sports sports marketing By Josh Spiegelman

"Historically in times of crisis, sports have played a vital role in healing and unifying."

How is COVID-19 affecting sporting content and ad spend?

carat iprospect mailman sports sports marketing By Surekha Ragavan

In the world of sports content and marketing, it's clear who the winners and losers are.

Supportive actions and messages for China pay off for football clubs

china mailman sports sports marketing By Andrew Collins

During the COVID-19 crisis in China, clubs made donations, sent best wishes and even placed encouraging messages on their jerseys, earning appreciation and engagement from Chinese fans.

How sports luxury became an inevitable evolution

apac asia luxury marketing nba sports By Matthew Keegan

As luxury and sports brands increasingly team up, we look at how luxury is losing its barriers and being redefined by new ideals, particularly those of younger and Asian consumers.

'Alibaba's digital transformation of the Olympics is the best marketing': CMO

alibaba campaign digital sports By Cindy Gu

On the sidelines of the launch of a logo for the Olympics, we spoke with Chris Tung, Alibaba CMO, about the company's marketing strategy, plans with the IOC, and digital art installation at Tokyo's Narita Airport.

The high value of live sports data—when used in the right way

data sports sports marketing By Surekha Ragavan

Brands that work with leagues and athletes would do well to collect data around live sports events, according to Sportradar.

'Commercial models need to catch up to live sports consumption' says F1 tech provider

amazon f1 sports

While broadcasters still play an important role in curating the live sport experience for fans, they must also figure out how to monetise the viewing experience as it spreads across platforms.

Dentsu appoints Mike Nakamura to create DAN Entertainment & Sports

Dentsu sponsorship sports sports marketing By Ben Bold

Nakamura's appointment is another sign of Tim Andree's 'one Dentsu' vision.

Game on: Local v. international sports leagues in Asia

basketball football nba sports sports marketing By Surekha Ragavan

Homegrown sporting leagues in countries like Thailand and the Philippines have the advantage of hyperlocal audiences — but how do they fare in sponsorship value against big names such as the NBA and EPL?

A year to Tokyo 2020: which brands will win the Games?

cocacola samsung sports By Matthew Keegan

12 months out from the Tokyo Olympics, we take a look at how the Games are affecting Japan’s advertising market — and ask which brands stand to make the most from the sports extravaganza.

Why brands should pay attention to non-traditional sports

esports sports sports marketing By Surekha Ragavan

From drone racing to the mass participation sports that are on the rise in Asia, sporting rulebooks are being thrown out across the board. Here's why brands should follow suit.

China’s 'Belt & Road' sporting ambition

esports sports By Staff Writer

From mass participation events to classical sport and the now ubiquitous esports, here are the biggest sports and fitness trends in China that brands should pay close attention to.

Manchester United scores in China with experience centre and app

china football manchester united sports sports marketing By Surekha Ragavan

The club continues to flex its muscles in China where its fanbase tips over 100 million.

New DAZN CMO aims to reach beyond your typical sports fan

sports By David Blecken

Yoichiro Basso wants to use the energy of upcoming sporting events to draw in a broader audience, even in the absence of screening rights.

How AirAsia manages brand partnerships through events

airasia airlines sports By Surekha Ragavan

We sit down with Rudy Khaw, the young maverick who's shaping the AirAsia brand.

Jack Morton partners with FIBA Basketball World Cup

china jack morton sports By Staff Writer

The agency will create experiences for fans to interact with the World Cup trophy.

Football boots rival sports into touch

basketball cricket football ipl nba sports By Faaez Samadi

F1 and baseball make gains, but neither come close to the beautiful game’s grip on Asia-Pacific.

Photos: Formula 1 launch event in Melbourne

sports sports marketing By Surekha Ragavan

Questions for the teams were crowd-sourced via fan channels, and the event culminated in an ‘ultimate selfie’.

V1 Auto World vrooms into auto brand experience race

china sports By Soon Chen Kang 江欣珍

The new multi-purpose venue and race track in Tianjin is already attracting the likes of BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Audi.

AccorHotels seals partnership with Tennis Australia

australia sponsorship sports By Staff Writer

The hotel group wants to capitalise on the Serena Williams effect at the Australian Open.

Jumping on the esports bandwagon

airasia esports sponsorship sports By Surekha Ragavan

A lesson from AirAsia in engaging with the gaming community.

Sports need to serve up the complete ‘pocket experience’

digital experience singapore sports streaming By Faaez Samadi

The full integration of data and live-streaming is the holy grail for the complete digital sports experience, says Mike McGraw of The Social Channel and WTA Networks.

What it's like to work on... Singapore Grand Prix

singapore sports sports marketing By Surekha Ragavan

What revs the operational engines for the team behind the annual Formula 1 race.

Pico subsidiary teams up with Japanese entertainment group

japan sports By Staff Writer

The alliance will focus on major sports sponsorship activations including the Tokyo Olympics 2020.

How brands are cashing in on the World Cup

china sports sports marketing By Surekha Ragavan

The biggest sporting event in the world is upon us and that means one thing – brands are scoring deals from all corners of the pitch.

Countries' athletic talent has brand impact well beyond stadium

sports By Oliver McAteer

Y&R's Best Countries data shows correlation between winning World Cup and brand strength.

Esports: the newest battleground for brands

esports gaming nielsen sports By Regan Leggett

Opportunities abound in the esports space but brands need a clear strategy and reliable measurement methods, finds Nielsen.

Fox Content Labs and Unilever get active in recent campaign

rexona sports unilever By Staff Writer

Fox’s content marketing arm, Fox Content Labs, teamed with the consumer goods giant to deliver viewer-centric, short-form content across Fox Sports.

Seb Coe: Physical inactivity is a 'ticking time bomb'

esports sports sports marketing tokyo 2020 By Olivia Parker

The athletics legend and sports ambassador tells Campaign Asia-Pacific why marathon-watching at Tokyo 2020 will be an experience like no other; how brands are seeing the 'health' agenda in supporting Asian games; and why traditional sport mustn't discard esports.

Twitter reacts to ‘disappointing’ Commonwealth Games closing ceremony

sporting events sports By Staff Writer

Australia's Channel Seven called the closing ceremony a "mistake" and a "stuff-up".

Gold Coast anticipates 600,000 for Commonwealth Games

sporting events sports By Staff Writer

Destination Gold Coast has been prepping for the major sporting event since 2011.

Twitter unveils new APAC sports streaming deals

football sports streaming twitter video By Faaez Samadi

From football to table tennis, deals encompass new partnerships and extensions of existing ones.

Fox Content Labs leads by example in destination marketing

sports taiwan travel By Michael Rich

Using Fox Sports influencer marketing strategies, the media giant has taken content marketing in travel to new heights.

Sports marketing in Asia: "It's not the future, it's now"

esports f1 football sponsorship sports By Robert Sawatzky

Social livestreaming, drones and eSports may be poised to take off, but with the next three Olympic games all set in this region, traditional sports sponsorships and local events still promise big growth potential for larger brands, says global agency CSM.