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Home , 2012 Tour de France, 2012 Tour of Britain, 2012 UCI World Tour, British Cycling, Cofidis (cycling team), Festina (cycling team)

sponsorship report on Pro 2013

IN ASSOCIATION WITH ©Tim De Waele sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013 Global insights

©Tim De Waele

tv sponsorship exposure delivered across 2012 season (dollars) 2.1bn average TV, print & online exposure delivered by world tour team across 2012 season (dollars) 88.4m dollars returned for each dollar spent on title sponsorship of a world tour team 5.4 TV hours broadcast across 175 countries in 2012. A year on year increase of 54%

Source: Repcuom Cycling24 & Eurodata 68,000 02 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013 welcome

Why commission Cycling competing on the this report? world stage commercially

Global interest in professional Repucom works across all cycling has never been higher, major sports with governing with increased broadcasting bodies, event rights holders, hours, TV audiences, roadside teams, sponsors and agencies attendances and booming to evaluate and improve public participation. Cycling is back on trend. their sponsorship investments. This report Despite this, the sport of professional represents a commercial health check for cycling struggles commercially. The debate pro cycling and an opportunity to drive on its governance, ethics, racing calendar debate around sponsorship in the sport. and commercial structure is louder than Being heavily reliant on sponsorship ever, but until these issues are reconciled income is a significant strategic risk for the sport will continue to be sustained by the sport. However our findings show that sponsorship revenues. professional road cycling delivers significant In an uncertain economic and political value for current sponsors and its fans climate the importance and composition are more engaged with sponsors when of sponsorship revenues warrants further compared to other sporting audiences. attention, which is why we’ve published the We believe cycling, in comparison to other Cyclingnews Sponsorship Report 2013, sports, is under valued by sponsors. in association with Repucom. Our measurement of sponsorship goes Our aim is to quantify the size of the deeper than the analysis featured in this market, analysing its key segments and report and we forward to working with how its teams and events pay back industry stakeholders to share and develop to sponsors. more detailed insights.

Daniel Benson Charlie Dundas Managing Editor, Cyclingnews.com Managing Director, Repucom UK & Ireland

author profiles

Stephen Farrand, European Editor: Steve Beckett, Founder: Bike Brands Cyclingnews.com Steve is former Head of Cycling Stephen Farrand has been a for BSkyB, working across Team cycling journalist since 1994. Sky and Sky’s Partnership with He joined Cyclingnews.com (SkyRide). In in 2010 and returned in 2012 2012 Steve created Bike Brands, after as Editorial Director at the Shift a company specialising in the commercial Active Media agency. development of cycling. [email protected] www.bikebrands.cc

03 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013

Thibault Pinot (FDJ-Big Mat) wins stage 8 of the 2012 Tour de ©Bettini

TV media exposure delivered by Team FDJ-BigMat during Stage 8 of the

Source: Repcuom Cycling24 $9.9m 04 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013 contents

06 key findings The sponsors 08 of cycling The sponsorship value 12 of a world tour team The value of 14 team branding consumer attitudes to 16 sponsorship in cycling The value of the 18 tour de france 20 the road ahead

05 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013 key findings

● V ery few global brands participating in a global sport. Sponsors from the traditional heartlands of the sport still dominate. Big opportunities for new entrant international brands to the sport.

● P rofessional cycling sponsorship delivers substantial and efficient media exposure returns. The sport’s appeal is broader than ever before and title sponsorship creates unique opportunities to sponsors concerned about brand clutter in sport.

● P erformance on the road and media exposure returns aren’t a direct correlation. Aggressive riding tactics and best practice in kit branding impacts greatly on media value delivered to sponsors.

● Cycling fans appreciate the integral role that sponsors play in their sport. They are more engaged with sponsors, more favourable towards their products and are early adopters of new technologies.

● T he Tour de France dominates the commercial landscape of cycling, accounting for nearly four fifths of WorldTour team exposure. Undoubtedly Le Tour is good for professional cycling but more effort is required to promote, package and present the sport more consistently to consumers across the season.

The true value of sponsorships and their rights must be considered in the context of a brand’s strategic objectives. As the industry becomes more sophisticated, brand building and the media exposure that drives this, becomes part of a far greater suite of benefits. For the purposes of this report however, we will concentrate on media equivalency, brand association with the sport and the additional buying propensity this provides. Even considered in isolation, these elements deliver a substantial ROI.

06 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013 how was the report compiled?

Repucom analysis combines media MEDIA VALUATION (QI) evaluation, consumer research and industry Repucom uses QI image recognition intelligence tools. The primary source of data technology to monitor brand exposure in for this report is Repucom’s CYCLING24 service: sport across TV, print and online in over 30 world markets. CYCLING24 Brand exposure ($) is calculated using the CYCLING24 is the world’s largest single source following inputs: database of cycling media analytics delivering data and insight that allow comparative media ● TV, print and online audience measurement equivalencies across brands, teams, races and ● Media advertising rates by market and markets. It tracks brand exposure in live TV media channel broadcasts across the UCI WorldTour, covering ● Weight of exposure calculated by all the Grand Tours (Tour de France, Giro measuring the size, location, duration d’Italia and La Vuelta), seven-day stage races and legibility of sponsor branding in each and one-day classics on a global basis. medium For the purpose of this report, CYCLING24 covers the 2012 UCI World Tour Season: SPORTS DNA SPORTS DNA is the world’s largest multi-client ● January to October study in sport, based on more than 30,000 ● All UCI World Tour Events interviews in over 30 countries. Tracked metrics by sport and by market include: As part of the CYCLING24 product, Repucom also tracks footage upon request ● Demographic profiling for clients for potential analysis should it be ● Levels of interest and participation in sport needed. For example, races outside of the UCI ● Views on sponsorship and perceptions of WorldTour (e.g. ) and one-off sponsors in sport TV broadcasts. ● Media consumption, attitudinal and For consistency purposes, a feed lifestyle data is taken for all events. For the events Eurosport does not cover, an alternative feed is used SPONSORGLOBE (e.g. ITV 4 for the ). SponsorGlobe is the world’s most extensive sponsorship and sports business intelligence database, containing commercial and sponsorship rights information covering thousands of current and historical deals between rights holders and sponsors

07 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013 The sponsors of cycling

A global sport on a commercial tipping point The economic outlook for professional cycling renowned for its inability to adapt and change seems forever uncertain. While other sports with the times? To begin to answer this benefit from a number of revenue streams question we profiled the leading 325 of 700 (most notably match day ticket sales, and TV sponsors in cycling who account for 75%+ of rights income), professional cycling depends sponsor exposure in the sport. largely on commercial sponsorship to fund its Our analysis shows the total brand operating costs. And the fragility of this model exposure ($) is substantial. From TV coverage is tested in times of economic contraction alone, the leading 325 sponsors in pro cycling like today. generated $2bn of sponsor exposure during Despite this, professional cycling has the 2012 season, 65% ($1.33 billion) being developed into a global sport. In 2013 the delivered by team sponsorship, while 35% UCI WorldTour will be broadcast to audiences ($743 million) of exposure was generated by across 175+ countries, with an international race/event sponsors. peloton of riders originating from 44 different Beyond these numbers a picture soon countries. This geographical expansion of the emerges: the sport of pro cycling orientates participant base of pro cycling has been most around demand from domestic sponsors and evident at the Tour de France, pro cycling’s contains few global brands in comparison to showpiece event. Over the last 30 years other major sports. Sponsors originating from The Tour de France has diversified from 16 three countries (, France, ) generate rider nationalities competing in 1981 to 31 nearly half of total sponsor exposure. This nationalities in 2012. demand, driven by the three Grand Tours Commercial demand for sponsorship (the Giro d’Italia, Tour de France and Vuelta rights usually follows consumer demand from Espana), inevitably skews the commercial national audiences following their national landscape of the sport. teams and athletes. So to what extent is this These top level insights are evidence of a true of sponsorship in pro cycling, a sport disconnection between a sport which struggles to market itself globally and the demands of (non-cycling industry) brands looking for The power brands of cycling sponsorship as a means to build international reach and engage with consumer audiences. TEAM sponsors ($1,337,359,511) 1. Sky 2. BMC 3. adidas 4. Movistar 5. Ag2R The Power Brands of Cycling 6. Specialized 7. FDJ 8. Cervélo 9. Our analysis of the 30 leading brands in pro 10. Oakley 11. Europcar 12. cycling reveals the power of the Grand Tours: 13. Rabobank 14. 15. Lotto total market ● Event sponsors of the Tour de France and $2,080,652,842 RACE sponsors ($743,293,842) Giro d’Italia dominate the Top 15 list of 1. LCL Banque 2. 3. Skoda 4. Carrefour event sponsors 5. Digital 6. Alcatel 7. Vittel 8. Le Coq Sportif ● 3 sponsors of non-WorldTour teams which 9. Estathe 10. PMU 11. Yorkshire.com benefited from Tour de France 12. Iseo Serrature 13. Ristora 14. CAME invites in 2012 feature in the Top 15 team 15. PowerBar sponsors Source: Repucom Cycling24. Total TV exposure. Brands ranked in order of exposure, high to low

08 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013

The It also highlights the predominance of Perhaps the biggest winner of all was sponsors domestic sponsors: adidas which generated in excess of $65m of cycling from TV exposure of its three-stripe brand on (CONT) ● 7 of the top 30 brands in cycling are cycling the Team Sky kit through the 2012 season. industry brands This figure is likely to be in excess of $100m ● 16 are domestic consumer brands print and online exposure from the 2012 operating in <3 markets Tour de France is accounted for. This is a great ● Only 7 are non-cycling international return for a sponsor investment estimated consumer brands to be under $1.5m, including rights fee and product costs. During 2012 most of the leading 30 brands will have benefited from returns far in Emerging Markets excess of their sponsorship rights fee. Italian, French and Spanish brands still Sky capitalised on a superb year for its dominate the commercial landscape of pro WorldTour sponsored team with in excess of cycling, driven by domestic sponsorship of 50% more brand exposure than the second the Grand Tours. This picture weakens when largest brand in the UCI World Tour. Sky’s we look at participation of the UCI WorldTour, investment in pro cycling has taken time where the three countries account for 33% of to bed in and isn’t without its detractors. riders and 26% of teams owned. However, it must be applauded for identifying This dilution of teams and riders the sport’s growth indicators and it has done competing at the highest level of the sport is much already to increase the reach and clear evidence of a sport that is diversifying popularity of the sport. In the UK, Team Sky has geographically, with the UCI WorldTour now played a major contributing role in generating being a global property comparable to other 1m extra cyclists from Sky-related cycling major sports in terms of events, composition initiatives since 2010 – fantastic proof that pro of athletes, teams and viewing. cycling delivers to sponsor objectives. In recent years Commonwealth, Anglo- Festina (watches) and Skoda stand out as Saxon and former Eastern Bloc countries have brands benefiting from longevity in the sport grown share of voice in the sport, built on the and category share of voice. Their investment success of their elite athletes, rising viewing strategy covers many events and regions and participation (all linked) – Team Sky (UK), through the season, generating sustained Orica-GreenEDGE (Aus), Saxo- (Den) and international and domestic exposure vs. its Katusha (Rus) being notable examples. target audiences. Car brands sponsoring Pro cycling title sponsors are often linked cycling may sound counter-intuitive but to their country of origin, with the many there is an efficient overlap in those who major teams linked to the nations that have consume both products. Cycling viewing and traditionally dominated the sport. However participation in key markets favours the 35-54 a limited availability of team places at the Male demographic; the target audience for top table of the sport (18 UCI WorldTour much of the automotive industry. team places) and an increased demand from international sponsors means the national identity of the major teams is likely to become riders country of origin less relevant. Formula 1 is a good example 68 65 for the future, with multi-national teams with 55 54 53 multi-national sponsors not tied to countries 51 of origin. 35 25 23 22 It’s most likely teams and major 15 12 11 9 9 8 8 7 7 commercial sponsors will continue to enter the sport from emerging markets, but conceivably BMC Racing Team and Team the biggest opportunity is for global brands Sky both offer examples of NZ USA

I taly from the big product categories (technology, well-thoughtSPAIN out shoulder FRANCE OTHERS logo positioning, while the telecoms, finance,FMCG, automotive) DENMAR K

value of spaces on the Androni

AZA K HSTAN wanting to build cost-effective reach and Giocattoli is reduced by K GREAT BRITAIN GREAT the huge number of sponsors’ ownership of a sport while avoiding clutter and competition for rights. 2013 UCI WorldTour 19 Teams, 507 Riders, 44 Nationalities

09 IN ASSOCIATION WITH Cyclingnews 2013 sponsorship report on Pro Cycling

The Industry Sponsors less informed audiences flood into the sport. sponsors Cycling brands were the first major sponsors Team exposure also mitigates marketing costs. of cycling of professional cycling when races like the We analysed the exposure generated (CONT) Tour de France, the and the by 19 frame manufacturers across 23 team Giro d’Italia were created a hundred years ago. sponsorships in 2012 (see below). As team budgets and sponsor visibility began Our findings point towards a sport where to rise, other sponsors began to take over, with success on the road doesn’t always produce Italian rider Fiorenzo Magni convincing Nivea a linear relationship with brand exposure. to become the non-endemic sponsor of a Exposure depends more on kit branding and team in 1954. teams riding aggressively in key races. However, professional cycling has always The BMC bike brand obtained the most been at the core of promoting bicycle frame exposure in the pro peloton but this is to be manufacturers and accessories, with millions expected. BMC is the title sponsor and the of riders around the world keen to emulate the key financial benefactor of the BMC team big-name riders of the sport. If a cycling brand and its €20m+ budget. So despite being is associated with pro cycling the perception the most visible bike brand in pro cycling, of the company’s products often improves, BMC’s return on investment is actually less building better consideration for sales. economically efficient when compared with But the costs for endemic sponsors are other manufacturers. rising. Cycling growing in popularity and Arguably the most successful brand is participation in key markets is booming Specialized which sponsors three WorldTour among affluent audiences, creating teams and commands branding across team inflationary pressures on sponsorship rights. clothing, helmets, footwear and bikes. This Pinarello’s current rights fee with Team allows Specialized to build reach, spread risk Sky is rumoured to be in excess of €3.5m per and reach multiple markets which orientate annum – a huge jump in terms of investment around the geographical location of teams and from Pinarello but a deal both Team Sky and their rider nationalities. Pinarello are confident they will benefit from. Cervélo creates a huge amount of exposure BMC and Cannondale have traded up further from its singular investment in Garmin Sharp, and are now title sponsors of WorldTour with cleverly branded jerseys and bikes. But teams. the best bang for buck is Colnago and its Loyalty between cycling brands and teams sponsorship of Team Europcar which has has lessened as the market has become more excelled at recent editions of the Tour de competitive, with manufacturers evaluating France and so achieved huge sponsor visibility. sponsorship investments more closely. Image, Giant, perhaps the biggest manufacturer in performance and prestige/association are the cycling industry and a long term supporter key metrics but team media exposure in key of Team Blanco (formerly Rabobank), has markets is becoming a bigger factor as new, suffered from under performance on the road and lack of kit branding. Canyon, despite strong showings at the Giro d’Italia and Vuelta Frame manufacturer rankings Espana in 2012, will be disappointed by its overall exposure driven by a poor Tour de France. The last point captures the conundrum of manufacturer sponsorship

sponsor BMC Specialized Cervélo Pinarello Colnago Scott Cannondale Lapierre K uoto Cipollini Trek Look Ridley Canyon Time Giant Wilier very well. Association with high-performing 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 teams and athletes maximises awareness among cycling’s core audience who buy higher end product. But the Tour de France BMC Lotto AG2R team Cofidis drives an incredible amount of coverage Garmin Lampre Farnese Leopard K atusha Europcar Euskaltel Team FDJ Team

Rabobank to mass-market audiences who buy lower GreenEDGE Vacansoleil Sky, Movistar Sky, Saur- end products that account for a significant percentage of manufacturer sales.

Saxo, OPQS, AstanaSaxo, total market value $231.6m

Source: Repucom Cycling24. Manufacturer TV brand exposure

10 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013

Global Origins of the Top 325 Sponsors in Pro Cycling

uk share of tv 11.7% 1.8% exposure russia 1.9%

netherlands belgium 4.9% 3.9%

germany us 11.1% 7.4% others 1.8% france 29.2%

switzerland 5.1%

spain 8.6% italy 11.1% Australia 1.5%

66 TOTAL TV EXPOSURE 56

44 number of sponsors 33

25 21

13 11 9 7 5 6 3 3 3 1 1 1 1 2 1 2 1

uk us italy spain japan korea france poland russia taiwan $66,222belgium canada $24,729 sweden denmark germany $116,286 $184,678 $491,725 $366,362 $848,085 australia $4,568,132colombia $2,595,395$5,824,732 $1,745,423 $24,372,922 $62,964,746 $29,206,464 $11,355,730$78,720,462 $31,084,485 $81,760,871 venezuela $467,391,443$118,536,321$177,347,537 middle-east $138,120,620 $187,110,613$178,094,162 netherlands switzerland

Source: Repcuom Cycling24. Total TV exposure. 2012 Season

11 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013 The sponsorship value of a world tour team

Professional cycling teams are victories generally equates to more media currently divided into three categories: coverage, but this correlation is not exact in ProTeam, Professional Continental and cycling and is more complex, other drivers Continental teams. The different categories being aggressive riding during key moments of reflect the quality of their riders, budgets and key races and effective kit branding. rights to compete in the biggest races. The Team Sky finished the 2012 season with ProTeams are guaranteed places at the top 38% more points than its nearest competitor table of the sport, the UCI WorldTour, which (Katusha) in the UCI WorldTour team includes the prestigious one-day classics and rankings, but in terms of media exposure the the three Grand Tours. British team completely dominated. Team Most ProTeams operate on budgets over Sky generated over $550m of equivalent €10m, with BMC, Team Sky, RadioShack- advertising value to its sponsors, over four Leopard and Astana estimated to have budgets times that of its nearest competitor. The in the region of €20-€25m. Consistent with average WorldTour team delivered $88.4m other team sports, staff salaries are the biggest of media exposure, with the majority (84%) slice of operating costs, accounting for up to delivered through TV broadcasts and the 75% of expenditure. remainder across print and online. Inevitably While a few teams can rely on direct or Team Sky’s high value skews the market indirect funding from wealthy benefactors, and many team values delivering exposure most depend on the backing of commercial between the $35m-$50m mark. sponsors looking to benefit from naming rights When compared to the initial rights fee and brand exposure in key markets. A team’s paid, this exposure represents a substantial success is often measured by its results: more ‘media return’ on investment for the sponsors. Repucom analysis shows the average ratio across ten ProTeam title partners was 5.4, meaning that for every dollar invested up front, the brand received over five dollars in

©Tim De Waele equivalent advertising value from the team. This is proof that cycling offers a cost effective platform to build international brand exposure. Increasingly, though, sponsors are looking for more than a pure media buy, with campaign objectives including building brand trust, favourability and consideration also important. In this regard, companies are title sponsorship of looking for alignment between their brands UCI WorldTour and the performance credentials and image teams delivers of the sport – in essence, a good fit. How significant consumers and fans perceive the sport, its media returns riders and its sponsors, is a key indicator in on sponsorship this equation and is explored in the section on investment page 16, Consumer Attitudes to Sponsorship in Cycling.

12 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013

value of a worldtour team

average team value team sky

Total Value $88.4m Television $65.8m Print $9.2m Online $13.4m

media exposure 5.4 (ROI) $ ProTeam title sponsors were $ returned over five dollars $ in equivalent advertising value for every dollar $ invested up front 1 $ Total Value $556m Television $407m $ $ Print $63m Online $86m

Source: Repcuom Cycling24. TV values are based on global dedicated broadcast coverage. Online values are based on articles picked up on the Meltwater monitoring system. Print values are based on monitoring of consumer & trade publications in <10 countries, which have been grossed up to estimate the global value.

13 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013 The value of team branding

Billboards on wheels is a term often The guiding principles of kit branding: referred to when talking about sponsorship ● Fewer, bigger, better. As a rule, reducing the in professional cycling. That was the case a amount of sponsors on clothing reduces hundred years ago and it remains the same clutter and so increases commercial value. today. Cycling teams are a blank canvas for This is much harder to achieve in practice sponsors wanting to impart their brand to than theory and cycling often under-sells its audiences on the road and through the media. true value to chase short-term deals. Only motorsport and sailing are comparable ● Pre-test, measure and refine. Branding on in terms of naming rights and the creative all aspects of team kit and equipment can licence on offer. But brand clutter in pro be manipulated to optimise the exposure to cycling, like most other sports, is an issue for brands and the commercial returns to teams. the industry and the application good branding ● Do not design kit with the retail market are often overlooked. in mind. Visual appeal and differentiation Rights fees paid by sponsors have the within the peloton is important but so are greatest bearing on brand exposure, but consistency and design. Team Sky, Movistar with the bulk of exposure driven by TV, the and Garmin-Sharp are great examples industry assumptions on the value of branding of a tightly controlled approach to team locations is often misguided. For instance, the branding, benefiting sponsors first but also belief that chest branding provides the best delivering to consumers who buy kit. media returns isn’t correct, albeit being vital real estate for title sponsors. The area driving A team’s identity and team colours are most exposure is usually the shoulders. This often dictated by the brand of the title sponsor. location ordinarily support one brand and This may increase the initial sponsorship achieve greatest legibility to TV audiences who value and investment for a team but it are used to viewing the peloton from a front undermines the creation of long-term team angle for many hours of race coverage. Other brand perpetuity. Sponsors frequently come areas under-utilised and undervalued include and go in professional cycling, forcing teams to the helmet and the rear panel of shorts which rebuild their identity from zero every few years. deliver very high exposure. To mitigate this risk and the damage it may cause, teams have begun to develop their own brand identities that aren’t directly linked to sponsor logo or brands. The Team Sky blue line, the Garmin-Sharp argyle pattern and the Riis Cycling eagle are good examples of team brand identities, while the Australian The legibility GreenEDGE team uses it’s name prominently of sponsor to establish its team identity. branding on This approach is likely to become more TV is key to important should the sport move towards a US delivering sport franchise model. In this scenario teams exposure returns could become viable commercial enterprises based on shared revenues from TV rights and ©Tim De Waele longer term team licenses.

14 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013

Sponsor Exposure by Location

HELMET 2-6%

Jersey SHOULDER Jersey CollAr 5-12% 0.5-2%

Jersey FRONT Jersey 6-12% SLEEVE 3-9%

Jersey BACK 1-4%

Jersey SIDE

1-3% SHORTS BACK BIKE 6-13% 1-6%

SHORTS SIDE 6-11%

Source: Repcuom Cycling24. Sponsor exposure differs greatly by the number of sponsors, size & legibility of branding.

15 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013 consumer attitudes to sponsorship in cycling

Professional cycling attracts a shows that fans of professional cycling are wide variety of fans and spectators around significantly more engaged with sponsors of the world. Many are active cyclists, spending the sport compared with other sports fans. time and money on the sport they love, and This is likely to be because fans of cycling view others have a partial interest in the sport sponsors of cycling as benefactors of their because they ride a bike for health, recreation, sport, given the importance of sponsorship to environmental, economic or transport reasons. the sport. These factors mean cycling is comparable to We also see that cycling fans have running and swimming for the way a diverse a higher propensity to be early adopters participant base is linked and inspired by the of new technology and new products – a elite end of the sport. healthy indicator of disposable income for The popularity of pro cycling has sponsors. traditionally been influenced by the location of Compared with general consumers, cycling events and success of a nation’s professional fans are twice as likely to actively inform riders. Booms in the US, Germany, Denmark themselves about a sponsor’s brand. They are and most recently the UK, Australia and 59% more likely to be the first person to have Canada can all be linked to breakthrough new and innovative products and 38% more performances in the Olympics or Tour de likely to choose a sponsor’s product rather France. But pro cycling’s appeal has been than a rival brand if the price and quality are bolstered further by a wider participant base the same. driven by lifestyle considerations. Nowadays Consumer attitudes play a vital role in cycling is not only an enthralling sport, it is a the viability and success of sponsorship fashionable activity with crossover appeal. in professional cycling. The sport offers Consumer research across eight excellent return on investment in terms of leading markets (UK, France, Germany, Italy, brand visibility and cycling fans are likely to be Japan, the Netherlands, Spain and the USA) more loyal to brands than other sports fans.

Fans of cycling: more informed and engaged with sponsors in sport ©Tim De Waele

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acceptance of sponsorship and consumer behaviour

197.1 other BASE* CYCLING sports (100) fans* fans* *INDEXED TO NATIONAlLY REPRESENTATIVE SAMPLE

159.2

138.7

124.3

115.3 115.7

i actively inform myself i am often the first i would choose a about brands engaged person to have new, sponsor’s product as a sponsor in sport innovative products over rival brands*

*if price and quality were the same

Source: Repcuom, SDNA

17 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013 The value of the tour de france

The Tour de France is the biggest annual visibility of other races on the professional sporting event in the world and by far the cycling calendar. The Tour de France cannot most important race in professional cycling. Its become a victim of its own success. Instead awareness is universal and the iconic yellow greater effort is required to market the UCI jersey is as famous any other prize in sport. WorldTour as a whole, so it generates greater For teams competing in the 2012 edition audience appeal. Key factors are: of the Tour de France, TV coverage delivered nearly 80% of their season’s exposure. For ● Packaging the sport better to consumer Team Europcar (a non WorldTour team who audiences. The televisual presentation received one of four wild card invitations) this of cycling is poor in comparison to the was in excess of 95%. Aggressive riding in the likes of football (Champions League), Tour de France delivers visibility for sponsors. motorsport (Formula 1) and tennis (ATP ’s Stage 8 win last year, delivered Masters Series). Broadcast rights are nearly $10m of exposure for the French fragmented – not all UCI WorldTour races FDJ Team. are covered by broadcasters and the So should this dominance of the Tour presentation of events is inconsistent. be viewed as a positive for the sport? Undoubtedly it skews the commercial ● Creating more sponsorship rights across landscape of professional cycling and for top the sport. Beyond team sponsorship tier sponsors this is a concern. The commercial it isn’t possible to sponsor the UCI risk and exposure in pro cycling appears WorldTour across a season like it is the loaded to these three weeks of racing in July. Champions League in soccer. The burden Undoubtedly the Tour de France is good is left for sponsors to negotiate line by for pro cycling. It is most people’s introduction line with multiple event owners. to the sport and is often a springboard from which new fans begin to engage with other ● Creating new revenue streams for teams, events. Its July scheduling also means it avoids to lessen the burden on sponsorship. other major sporting events, providing a larger Consolidating TV rights to optimise audience opportunity than the two other commercial income for events rights Grand Tours and the classics. holders and teams is a strategic It would be unwise to point the finger at opportunity for the sport, but dependent a dominant Tour de France when looking for on collaboration between teams, rights something to blame for the lack of global holders and the UCI.

% of 2012 WorldTour TV exposure delivered for teams competing in 79.9% ©Tim De Waele

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tour de france sponsor tv exposure as % of total season

tour de france

E U R O rest of P C season AR winners & losers 96 top 3 teams %

bottom 3 teams

S A

U

R

- S O J A S S U K N Y 8 8

7.5% 6.7% V

A

C

A K L A N A T S M U O P S L R H E E A I 5 4 L 2 7.7% 7.1% 7.9%

Source: Repucom. TV Exposure of 2012 Tour de France, compared to the rest of 2012 WorldTour

19 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013 the road ahead

This first edition of the Cyclingnews. be left to new fans of the sport to join the com sponsorship report on pro cycling has dots and current fans deserve a better deal. confirmed what was widely suspected but The UCI, broadcasters, event organisers and never publicly confirmed by accurate data: the teams should look to other sports in creating sport of professional cycling gives commercial a TV product which is more insightful and sponsors excellent return on their investments. consistent in presentation. The data calculated by Repucom and Creating more fans of professional cycling analysed by Cyclingnews.com reveals the and more engagement with current fans value of brand visibility, the positive consumer should be a shared objective that drives attitudes of cycling fans and the growing collaboration amongst all stakeholders. global appeal of the sport. Professional cycling is at a tipping point. A better structure After years of scandals and the impact of a The current structure of professional cycling global economic crisis, it is time for the sport has developed over the last 100 years but it is to seize the moment, plan and prepare for a now clearly outdated. It is precarious and holds better future. back strategic development, often deterring We believe there are four key strategic major sponsors from long-term investment. factors which much be addressed for pro Instead of competing and often fighting cycling to thrive, develop and attract new with each other, the athletes, teams, race sponsorship from commercial companies. organisers and governing bodies need to work together to develop and implement reforms. Credibility Shared revenue structures, including financial First and foremost, the sport has to work hard fair play, would benefit everyone. to rebuild its credibility. Fifteen years of major doping scandals have significantly damaged Think globally the sport’s image and public perception. Pro cycling teams are traditionally linked Cycling has done more than every other to a country, with riders from that country sport to fight doping in recent years and is predominating, and are often backed starting to see the benefits of its actions. Every by sponsors with limited international stakeholder has to accept responsibility for commercial interests. The Repucom data the credibility of the sport and everyone has to shows that while sponsorship return on work together to avoid further doping scandals. investment is high, the lack of global or at Doping should not be an issue for a least European sponsors means there is still sponsor considering investing in professional significant untapped potential. cycling. Indeed, the sport’s stance against Teams need to shake off their national doping should be an opportunity and a source identity and embrace the idea of becoming of extra value in every sponsorship agreement. truly international. Only then can they attract multinational sponsors that will allow them to Customer first compete and survive at the highest level. Pro cycling is an exciting, often dramatic The road ahead for professional cycling sport but it can also be difficult for consumers may currently appear steep and strewn with to understand. Racing formats and tactics difficulties but the potential of the sport are complex and often subtle. It shouldn’t remains huge.

20 IN ASSOCIATION WITH sponsorship report on Pro Cycling 2013 About us

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