AURA SPORTS ANNOUNCE LAUNCH OF DEDICATED SPONSORSHIP DEPARTMENT WITH BOAT SHOW AGREEMENT
June 29, 2005
Aura Sports today announced that it has expanded its dedicated sponsorship department and will now offer a full sponsorship sales and management service to offline sports properties. The move comes in response to a number of client requests to fully co ordinate online and off line campaigns and to make making multi environment sponsorships more accountable. This is the first time that the company has moved ioutside of the digital arena.
The new strategic department launches with an agreement from the British Marine Federation to secure headline and secondary sponsorships for both the London and Southampton Boat Shows. These are the two biggest events in the UK boating calendar, and are two of the most high profile events of their kind in the world, between them attracting well over 300,000 visitors, with attendees coming from all parts of the world.
Both Boat Shows are properties of the British Marine Federation, the UK trade body for the UK’s Marine Leisure industry. The industry is worth some £2 billion annually to the UK economy, with £800m coming in exports. It is estimated that some £400m of business is generated at the London Boat Show each year alone.
The appointment comes after a competitive multi-agency pitch held by the British Marine Federation.
Aura Sports Head of Sponsorship Vicky Kell, will be recruiting to expand her team, and she will run the department.
Paul Wright MD of Aura Sports says;
“When you consider that the London Boat Show is the biggest annual event in London, I think that this agreement demonstrates the level of professionalism that Aura Sports has invested in. It is clearly a fantastic reflection of the company’s reputation within the sports industry. We are thrilled to be working with such an established and successful event, particularly one that has such a high public profile.”
James Gower, Director of Marketing for the British Marine Federation adds;
“Sponsorship has become incredibly important for live events in recent years so this is clearly a key appointment for us. Sailing and boating have enjoyed a strong recent burst of the media spotlight, thanks to the attention thrown onto the sport by the likes of Ellen Macarthur and the British Olympic squad, and we hope that this will see us well placed to meet our objectives. We are delighted to be working with Aura Sports in selling the Title Rights to both the London and Southampton Boat Shows. We were certainly impressed by their credible and robust approach, and we hope that this is the beginning of a long and successful relationship.”
The London Boat Show takes place between 6 and 16 January 2006 at ExCel in London’s Dockland area, and is situated right next to City Airport. The show will also feature the UK Indoor Windsurfing Championships, which boast $100,000 in prize money and Aura Sports will be seeking a separate sponsor for the event.
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For further information please contact Mark Thursfield at MTA Media on
07780 991 975 or mark.thursfield@mtamedia.co.uk
NOTES:
Aura Sports:
- Aura Sports represents the digital properties of 87 of the UK’s leading professional Football Clubs
- The Aura Sports UK network now has over 9 million unique users
- In 2004 BSkyB acquired a minority share in Aura Sports
- Aura Sports is a privately funded company based in Holland Park, London and Liverpool
- Aura Sports was recently ranked 4th in the Media Momentum Awards – Celebrating the top 50 fastest growing media companies in the country
The London Boat Show
- The 2006 London Boat Show will have more than 8,000 staff
- It is estimated that the London Boat show contributes over £40m to the local economy
- Over 800 accredited UK and International journalists will attend the event from both print and broadcast media
It costs over £1m to stage the Indoor windsurfing Championships at the London Boat Show
