Corporate Sponsorship in High School Athletics By Mike Begich Adam Philpott

1. Corporate Sponsorship in High School AthleticsBy Mike Begich & Adam Philpott

2. What is corporate sponsorship? Sponsorship- Acquisition of rights to affiliate or directly associate with a product or event for deriving benefits related to that affiliation or association (Mullin, 2000). Examples of Corporate sponsors Nike Coca-cola

3. Why do corporations sponsor high school athletics? Reason: Corporations use sponsorships in the high school setting as a way to promote their products to reach a new target audience. This new target audience includes teenagers, who could potentially become product users in the near future. Marketing research shows at least 33 percent of the center of business falls in the teenage demographic (Knight, 2004).

4. When did corporate sponsorship begin? It has been around since the beginning of organized and professional sports. Over the years, sponsorship in high school athletics has become a large area of growth in corporate marketing and many Fortune 500 companies are active sponsors. Began to reach out to college and high school sports.

5. This trend has increased significantly over the past years and is continuing to grow. An estimated 10 million dollars or more is spent yearly by corporations nationwide in sponsorship money towards high school sports (Fisher, 2002). The National Federation of State High School Associations regulate these partnerships and don�t allow corporate advertising on the athletes� uniforms.

6. Benefits for Corporations Vary depending on their level of involvement. Opportunities to promote their company with advertising and publicity. Supporting the high school athletes and community.

7. Why schools are turning to sponsorship? Fund-raising and school/ government funding alone can�t support some athletic programs. District budget cuts, program budgets cuts, and state funding cuts. Less taxpayer money.

8. Current Trends In high schools that are able to obtain corporate sponsorship are beginning to show signs of trends. In the 1980�s it started to make its way into college athletics and now its beginning to show up in high schools around the country.

9. Where does corporate sponsorship show up in schools? Naming of Facilities Ex. Vernon Hills High School sold its naming rights of its stadium to local paint corporation and now its called Rust-Oleum Stadium. Forms of Advertisement Ex. Company�s logos appear on tickets to high school sports events, scoreboards, billboards in end zones, gym walls, locker rooms and the buses carrying teams to games (Pennington, 2004).

10. Upgrading Facilities Ex. Kansas City high school administrators in the Blue Springs School District are exploring corporate sponsorship to finance putting in synthetic turf for two of their football fields (Mellinger, 2005). Corporate Logos in stadiums Ex. Naperville High School in Chicago agreed to name Under Armour as their official equipment sponsor. As being the official sponsor, Under Armor has �two banners hanging in the high schools stadium (CNN, 2002).

11. Funding Championship Tournaments Ex. Southern California�s regional high school basketball championships are officially the Toyota basketball championships because of a $165,000 donation made by that company (Pennington, 2004).

12. Sponsorship Financial support Some school districts in Texas receive 35-40% of advertising proceeds (King, 2006). Schools are not receiving enough governmental funding. Decision makers- school boards, principals, parents/ teacher groups, and community groups. Athletic support and overall support.

13. Dangers Exploitation Corporations may take advantage of their financial support. Commercialization

14. Ethical Concerns Manipulating young minds and influencing perceptions. Corporate sponsors in schools or athletics should be appropriate for the audience that will be exposed and should be consistent with the school�s ideals and values. Ex. Alcohol and tobacco related companies

15. Ethical Concerns School�s �selling out� and abusing sponsorships. Sponsorship may threaten amateurism and professionalizes high school sports.

16. Future Corporations Developing new opportunities and strategies to reach out. Getting into sponsoring extracurricular activities like scholastic sports. Increasing on a national level. Defend their territory in schools by implementing product domains.

17. Schools Competition for sponsorships. Seek out multiple sponsors. Seek more local businesses. Partner with unconventional companies. Companies that do not share educational values and schools may lower standards for sources of sponsorship. Ex. Alcohol and tobacco companies

18. References Fisher,E. (2002, Oct. 15). Are high-school sports keeping the right company? As more corporations sponsor more scholastic athletics, critics fear impressionable young minds are receiving the wrong signals about winning and commercialism. Insight on the News, p. 2. Keen,J. (2006, July 27). Wisconsin Schools find corporate sponsors. USA Today, p. 1. King, David. (2006, November 30). In hunt for revenue, high schools turn to advertising. San Antonio Express News, 2006. Retrieved February 22, 2007, from Lexis Nexis Academic Database. Knight,D. (2004, March 11). Indiana High school Athletic Programs Seek Marketing Play. The Indianapolis Star, p. 2. Lickteig, Melissa. (2003). Brand-name schools: The deceptive lure of corporate-school partnerships. The Educational Forum, 68, no. 1, p. 44-51. Mellinger,S. (2005, March 22). Corporate sponsors on school wish list. Kansas City Star, The (MO), p. 1-2. Mullin,B. (2000). Promotional Licensing and Sponsorship. Sports Marketing 2nd Edition, p. 254. Paton,J. (2007, Jan. 5). DPS soliciting advertising. Rocky Mountain News, p. 2. Pennington,B. (2004,Oct.18). Reading, writing and corporate Sponsorships. New York  Times,p.1 Unknown. (2002, Aug. 15). Cash-strapped schools look for sponsors. CNN.com/EDUCATION, p. 1.