PHAR Insight, the specialist research and analysis arm of PHAR, has been appointed by Al-Ahli to undertake a review of its primary sponsorship assets. Al-Ahli currently lie second in the Saudi Professional League and are managed by former Tottenham Hotspur manager Christian Gross.
PHAR Insight will be applying its industry-leading proprietary sponsorship evaluation tools to calculate the value of Al-Ahli’s key sponsorship assets, enabling the club not only to identify what its properties are worth as marketing assets, but also to develop the strategic framework that enables its commercial potential to be realised.
Sony athlete Alistair Brownlee wins in Cape Town
Alistair Brownlee, Olympic champion and a Sony ambassador, came back from an ankle injury that prevented him from competing at three previous events by taking gold at World Triathlon Series event in Cape Town this weekend. His brother Jonny, also supported by Sony, missed the event to concentrate on the upcoming Triathlon Test event in Rio, but the GB domination was evident after Vicky Holland’s triumph in the women’s race on Saturday. What a great week for British Triathlon!
AirAsia matchday activation at Loftus Road
QPR v Everton was AirAsia’s second sponsored game of the season and we had a number of special guests attending the match who all had the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to spend the entire week with QPR, watch the team train, meet the players and watch the game from AirAsia box:
- Winners of the QPR coaching clinics: Last year, QPR and AirAsia organised a series of coaching clinics across Thailand, China and Malaysia to introduce more kids to the game and give them the chance to train with a Premier League Club – 5 of these kids now had the opportunity to experience QPR first hand and train with QPR Academy
- On-board competition winners: Everyone who upgraded their seat during the promotional period last year was entered into a draw for their chance to win a trip to QPR
- Media: 19 media guests from Chinese and Thai titles who have been following coaching clinic winners’ journeys… As ‘a thank you’ for covering their stories, AirAsia gave them the chance to spend a week with us in London
TAKE A SHOT AS A MANAGER
We set up a selfie kiosk booth in front of the Club Shop on South Africa Road for fans to take a ‘selfie’ against a branded ‘interview’ backdrop – pictures could be instantly printed as a keep-sake from the game, emailed through or shared through Social Media. All photos were also available through an online gallery after the game.
MASTER BLASTER
At half-time, AirAsia’s lovely cabin crew took to the pitch with branded t-shirt cannons. 600 spectators were lucky enough to get a free t-shirt courtesy of AirAsia and QPR
British Triathlon appoints PHAR as its exclusive sponsorship sales agency
Following a competitive pitch, PHAR has been appointed by the British Triathlon Federation – the national governing body for the sports of Triathlon, Duathlon and Multisport in Great Britain – as its exclusive sponsorship sales agency.
PHAR will develop and deliver innovative and exciting opportunities for commercial partners with British Triathlon in the run up to Rio 2016 and beyond.
Triathlon is currently one of the fastest growing sports in the UK, with over 196,000 race starts across more than 1,000 events in 2014. Great Britain has enjoyed huge success in the sport over the last decade, winning 7 ITU individual world titles, and in Alistair Brownlee has the current Olympic, European and Commonwealth champion.
Chief Executive of the British Triathlon Federation, Jack Buckner, commented: “We are delighted to appoint PHAR as our exclusive sponsorship sales agency. Triathlon is currently enjoying an outstanding period of growth and success in Britain, both at a grassroots and elite level, and we believe PHAR’s expertise is well-placed to ensure we are able to offer relevant and exciting platforms to prospective partners looking to engage with Triathlon.”
Nick Lockwood, Managing Director at PHAR, added: “Triathlon has a rare combination of highly desirable attributes that makes it a hugely appealing property for brands. We are looking forward to working with British Triathlon to create a sponsorship offering that enables brands to communicate and engage with a rapidly expanding, and incredibly sought-after demographic.”
Mayor of London appoints PHAR Music to find partners for Busk In London
- Today Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, announced the Busk in London scheme
- Backed by Westminster, Network Rail and TfL, the scheme will make it easier to busk in the capital and aims to attract thousands of young, talented performers into Busking.
- PHAR Music have been appointed by the Greater London Authority to find partners for the scheme and this morning Ticketmaster UK were announced as the first associate partner in a deal procured by PHAR.
- London’s first Busking Code of Conduct unveiled, common sense rules, devised by performers, councils, businesses and the police
Nihal Pekbeken, VP of Marketing, Ticketmaster UK, said: ‘We are proud of London’s rich, diverse, cultural heritage and wanted to showcase the emerging world of live entertainment through the creation of Ticketmaster’s tm Rising campaign. Our collaboration with Busk in London ensures we are able to introduce new talent from the streets of London to our audiences. From buskers to comedians, tm Rising brings the best of unknown talent to the forefront.’
PHAR wishes good luck to Ghana in the Africa Cup of Nations Final
PHAR wishes good luck to Ghana in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations against Ivory Coast on Sunday, especially Andre Ayew, Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu, Harrison Afful, Mohammed Awal, Jonathan Mensah and Baba Rahman, whom we are currently working closely with through our Director of Football Talent, Yaw Amponsah – one of Ghana’s leading football agents.
Our presence in Ghana has recently been strengthened with our association with Kumasi Cornerstone Football Club which will aid us in developing the best young footballing talent in the country.
In the January Transfer Window we successfully brokered deals for three Ghanaian footballers:
Ibrahim Moro from AIK to FC Kairat
Mohammed Awal from Martizburg United to Al-Shabab
Abdul Latif Abubakari from Liberty Professionals to Misr El-Makasa SC
PHAR brokers deal for Ghanaian Internanational Mohammed Awal to join Saudi Arabian side Al-Shabab FC from Maritzburg United
Awal, who joined the Martizburg in 2012, will link up with Al-Shabab after the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations in Equatorial Guinea.
“We would like to thank the player for his outstanding contribution at Maritzburg United and wish him all the best for his future,” United team manager Quintin Jettoo told the club’s official website.
“We signed Mohammed as a relatively unknown player and we are proud to have been able to help in his development as he went on to become a regular in the Ghana national team, which naturally has brought a lot of interest in him.
“We will certainly miss Mohammed in the team, but we are fortunate to have a fair amount of depth in the centre-back position and we are confident that the players we have will use the opportunity to step up and stake a regular place in the starting eleven.”
Pure Gym appoints PHAR to develop and deliver a national commercial partnerships programme
PHAR has been appointed by Pure Gym – the UK’s largest and fastest-growing gym group – to develop and deliver the opportunity for national commercial partners across the group.
Pure Gym, opened in 2009, is now the UK’s largest gym group expecting to surpass 500,000 members and 100 clubs in the next 12 months. In 2014 it enjoyed over 20 million visits to its sites and now, with continued growth planned over the next two years, Pure Gym is looking to work with brands with the aim of delivering long-term ancillary revenue streams and enhancement of their customers’ experiences at the gyms.
Commercial Director at Pure Gym, Jamie Hutchinson, commented: “We are delighted to be working with PHAR and to be developing an exciting commercial partnership programme.”
He added “We choose to work with PHAR because of the company’s high-profile track record of securing partnerships for the world’s leading brands. PHAR’s expertise is second to none and we look forward to securing a number of exciting partnerships”
Ian Tussie, Head of Partnerships at PHAR, added: “Pure Gym is one of the few rights holders that can offer a national reach to partners and a huge audience of people to communicate with on a regular basis. There are so many opportunities for partners to create genuine added value for Pure Gym’s members and to engage with them, not just whilst they’re working-out, but in their everyday lives and we’re extremely excited to work with Pure Gym and to start talking to the market about the opportunities.”
PHAR Talent brokers deal for Ghana International midfielder Ibrahim Moro to join ambitious Kazakh side FC Kairat
PHAR’s Talent division has secured a move for 21-year old defensive midfielder Ibrahim Moro from AIK Stockholm to FC Kairat in Kazakhstan
Moro, who spent three years with AIK had excelled in the Swedish top-flight, and attracted the attention of Kairat who have signed him on a 2-year deal.
Moro moved to Sweden in August 2012 after scoring the winner to give New Edubiase United a 1-0 win over AshantiGold in the final of the MTN Ghana FA Cup.
FC Kairat finished third last season in the Kazakh top-flight and will play in the qualifying rounds of the 2015/2016 Europa League.
PHAR are recruiting in Manchester!
We are looking for a Sales Executive to join our team in Manchester with the primary objective of securing meetings with top brands to sell sponsorship opportunities and other PHAR services such as sponsorship activation, consultancy and evaluation. Working closely with the Head of Partnerships and the rest of the UK team, the role will involve making contact brands via email and phone with the aim of securing meetings.
We are looking for a hard-working, bright individual, a quick-learner with an interest in, and understanding of what we do. The role includes researching brands, understanding what they do and their objectives, and using the information at your disposal to best secure meetings. This is predominantly a sales job and as such requires a persistent individual.
Qualifications:
- Sales experience is preferable
- A university degree of 2:1 or higher is desired but not essential
- You must have excellent presentation and writing skills
Salary:
- Competitive basic subject to experience, plus sales commission
If you feel up to the challenge and have relevant experience in the sponsorship sector then please get in touch direct with Ian Tussie (ian.tussie@pharpartnerships.com)
PHAR NEWS 