NCAA Sponsorships

What happens when you mix a noun and a verb? Intense excitement to go forward, advance or proceed…welcome to March Madness baby! It’s that time of year when everyone is a coach, whether it’s on the sidelines of the game, cheering from the stands, or jumping up and down in the living room. With so many fans glued to their television sets and checking scores on the internet, this is a time of the year that has great potential for advertisers.

March Madness generates more national TV advertising revenue than the playoffs for baseball, professional basketball or college football. Fans of college basketball are younger, with nearly half under the age of 44, and 42% having a household income of $75,000 or more, according to Media Life Magazine.

While fans wait all season hoping their team surpasses the Sweet Sixteen, then the Elite Eight and on to the Final Four, businesses have been busy planning for this athletic event well ahead of the beginning of the season. Since the Final Four is the NCAA’s highest profile event, they handle all advertising and sponsorship opportunities for March Madness. Involvement is limited to NCAA corporate sponsors, and while financial terms and sponsorship deals are kept secret by the NCAA, it is believed that they are in the low six figures each year.

2010 NCAA corporate sponsors include AT&T, Coca-Cola, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Hershey’s, The Hartford, LG, Lowe’s and State Farm. All make sense considering that insurance, telecommunications, beverages, rental cars, electronics, candy, financial services and home improvements are all product categories that do well connecting with the viewer demographics. Media Life Magazine reports that 68.6 percent of avid college basketball fans are male.

The Final Four differs from most other events because it doesn’t permit any advertiser signage inside the actual arena’s seating areas or playing court. This area is used exclusively to promote the NCAA and the teams involved. Outside of the arena, signage is restricted to NCAA sponsors, and their signage overrides any existing sponsorships or exclusivity agreements. For example, Pepsi sponsors the Alamodome, where the Women’s Final Four will take place this year, but Coca-Cola is an official NCAA sponsor. Therefore, Pepsi signs will be covered up and replaced with Coca-Cola advertisements during the Final Four in San Antonio.

The time has come for fans and sponsors alike. The wait is over. Let the Madness of March begin!