The Football Federation of Australia (FFA) has appointed lifestyle marketing agency, Team Epic, to service its in-venue media program for the Hyundai A League Finals, Socceroos Internationals and A League All Stars.

The major agreement will see Team Epic, part of the Dentsu Aegis Network, work with the FFA to manage stadium advertising and infrastructure at Football events along with project management, commercial assessment and stakeholder management for the sport.

The appointment comes as Football strongly emerges as one of the premier sporting codes in Australia, with the FFA responsible for driving this growth.

Luke Bould, head of commercial at the FFA said, “Team Epic, previously known as Stadia Media, has an unrivalled track record as a leader in sports marketing and rights management. They work with three of the major sports codes in Australia in Cricket, AFL and now Football, manage the rights for two of the biggest stadiums in Australia in the MCG and Etihad Stadium.

“Team Epic is a proven partner that has shown great innovation and commercial savvy in its work for Cricket Australia. This ability to innovate – to see things differently and drive change in the venue environment is critical to the success of FFA as we continue to drive our agenda for innovation and change. Making strong strategic partnerships with experts in their field, such as this, is imperative to the success of our code.”

Richard Coyne, managing director of Team Epic said, “The FFA came to us seeking a partner with the ability to service their code in its current format, and plan for a big future.”

FFA is driving strategic links with the broader Asian market, which is identified as an important growth opportunity. As part of the Dentsu Aegis Network, Team Epic has the ability to leverage not just a truly global network, but specifically, Dentsu Sports – a business with extensive knowledge and experience in football throughout Asia.

“Dentsu Sports Asia work in partnership with FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation, delivering commercial returns through both sponsorship and media broadcast negotiations. They have a deep knowledge of the Asian Football market and will act as an important part of our partnership with FFA as it grows its presence in international markets,” said Coyne.

“Football is a fantastic sport and there are countless opportunities for brands and fans to connect at all levels.  It is the fastest growing sport Australia and it is generating significant interest from shrewd investors looking to partner their brands with the world game. We have a terrific working relationship with the key leaders at the FFA and look forward to achieving great commercial success through innovation over the coming years.

“We are ideally placed to help the FFA take advantage of the rapidly changing sports and stadium environment. We have built a team of people who are disciplined in digital media, logistics management, event operations and commercial management.  It is this combination of skills and our heritage of innovation that has kept us at the forefront of the industry.”