Farrer & Co Women in Sport - Report - Page 27
Of course, there is now pressure on the
Lionesses to back this up on the field
with momentum in their results, which
is not easy. But a great deal of goodwill
has been generated because of the
free-to-air nature of the spectacle, an
increasing rarity. The FIFA Women’s
World Cup run was watched by many
more in the UK than the successful
men’s cricket World Cup the same
summer, which was limited to Sky
viewers (and where in-match audiences
peaked at 1.8 million).
This is an issue that cricket
recognises, with the ECB’s The Hundred
tournament simultaneously launching
free-to-air men’s and women’s franchises
and announcing a £50 million five-year
plan for the women’s game. Again, this
is a sport where on-field results for
England – as for India – had seen some
of the momentum from the previous
summer’s women’s World Cup drop
off, hence the need for investment
back into the sport.
Coverage across all media has a vital
role, both culturally and commercially.
It is only now that we have BBC online
not making category distinctions
between cricket and women’s cricket,
and football and women’s football.
Newspapers are following suit. Changes
like this help to progress equality and
keep women’s sport front and centre
in the national consciousness.
However, it is still important that
women’s sport retains an element of
individual identity that is different to
the men’s offering. Take the Barclays FA
Women’s Super League deal: Barclays’
financial commitment up until 2022 is
tiny compared to the men’s game, but
it is the most significant investment in
women’s sport in this country. The fact
that Barclays is also a major player in
the men’s Premier League has some
positive implications at this stage:
being at the same table sends a strong
signal about the status of the women’s
game. We have also seen this in
NatWest’s support for cricket and its
“Cricket has no boundaries” campaign.
However, just weeks after that deal
was announced, the England women’s
national football team inked a deal with
Boots – a sponsor with good synergies
in terms of healthy lifestyle, fitness, and
appeal across the sexes that (even in
2019) might not be seen as a natural fit
in the more macho world of men’s sport.
Farrer & Co
Sponsors have a role to play alongside the
media in helping change the narrative, and
doing so can only improve the commercial
prospects for everyone.
So, there is a delicate balance in getting
the messaging right, and attracting
a diversity of brand partners.
While long-term, single-sponsor
relationships bring stability, rights
holders usually prefer the greater
revenue potential in the ability to break
up their rights individually and build a
portfolio of partners. Shorter deals for
broadcast, kit, or naming rights are less
certain in terms of financial planning,
but enable both parties to be agile and
move with fast-changing consumer
habits. That should apply to women’s
sport as much to men’s, but the reality
at the moment is that it remains less of
a seller’s market – so, with investment
at a premium, risky and dynamic
partnerships may be less attractive
(or feasible) for women’s rights holders
compared to locking in lower-yield
deals with steady sponsors.
switched on to equality, diversity
and inclusion issues – this is a key
consideration in brand management
and reputation.
Equally, sport is a barometer for
society, and if we want young girls to
grow up knowing they have the same
opportunities as young boys, then it is
important that this is reflected in the
media and how the product is marketed.
Serious commercial interest in many
women’s sports is still at an early stage,
and being mindful of its importance
does not immediately translate into
taking investment risks.
Major commercial players are not
charities, after all. But sponsors have
a role to play alongside the media in
helping change the narrative, and doing
so can only improve the commercial
prospects for everyone.
£50m
ECB’s five-year plan for
the women’s game
For these reasons, it will take time
before we can expect the figures
involved to compete with the men’s
game. But there are positives in the
current differentiation.
The atmosphere at women’s football
games is attracting very positive
responses compared to the men’s
game, and – in a #MeToo era, where
sports sponsors have become hugely
Owen O’Rorke
Senior Associate,
Farrer & Co
27
