Sponsorship is one branch of sports marketing. Sponsorship provides corporations with the ability to achieve their marketing goals through a unique approach in an environment that is interactive and exciting. Sponsorship appeals to consumers on an emotional level, allowing people to develop a relationship with a brand, which results in higher customer retention and loyalty. Companies sponsor particular events for the borrowed imagery and the soul of the property, as well as to tap into consumer emotions. As the fans' relationships with the team develop and deepen, so do their feelings toward those companies associated with the team.
Sponsorship also enables a corporation to break through the clutter of traditional advertising.
In this regard, sponsorship works in synergy with the rest of the marketing mix. It gives a corporation the opportunity to complement all of its marketing efforts and leverage its sales objectives by creating an integrated marketing program through the use of multiple exposure vehicles.