On day one, the intersection of sport and culture took centre stage at Cannes In Cairns. The intriguing panel, sponsored by Disney and ESPN, delved into the evolving landscape of sports entertainment and the role brands and culture have to play in this, with a particular focus on basketball’s surge in popularity within Australia.
Lead image: MC Jules Steer, Sam Lane, Rapthi Thanapalasingam, James Griffiths & Paul Smith
With basketball at the core of the conversation, broadcast journalist Sam Lane guided the panel, which consisted of Paul Smith, owner and founder of Total Sports & Entertainment, Rapthi Thanapalasingam, head of brand and content at Suncorp Group, and James Griffiths, executive creative director at Universal, Music for Brands.
Smith provided a fascinating case study on the growth of basketball in Australia. With firsthand experience as a co-owner of the Sydney Kings, Smith shed light on the strategic initiatives driving the sport’s expansion. He emphasised the importance of understanding the demographic landscape, leveraging sponsorship opportunities, and tapping into cultural intersections to broaden the sport’s appeal.
“There’s the sport itself, the game, but we put on a show, and we also know there’s a fan base out there that doesn’t engage in the NBL or they more focused on the NBA. We’ve worked hard over the last five or six years to really tease out these elements and how we can engage with a fanbase that isn’t immediately connected to the sport but they’re connected to another channel. And culture is very much at the forefront of it,” Smith explained.
Thanapalasingam, representing Suncorp and AAMI, unpacked the significance of community engagement in sports sponsorships. Drawing parallels between basketball and cultural phenomena like fashion and music, she emphasised the brand’s commitment to fostering meaningful connections with fans beyond traditional marketing strategies. Through strategic partnerships with the Australian National Basketball League (NBL) and innovative content initiatives, the brand aims to deepen its resonance with diverse audiences.
“The partnership started in a very traditional broadcast paid media strategy. We very quickly evolved that into more of a rights-holder alignment, which meant that for us as a brand, we could really extend and get back deeper reach into the NBL’s ecosystem. We have seen a really strong uplift in terms of brand metrics from consideration, trust and NPS. Our latest tracking from Nielsen showed a 20 per cent brand recall for AAMI through this partnership. So, for us, that’s an excellent result”.
Griffith offered valuable insights into the power of music in amplifying the sports experience. Highlighting the symbiotic relationship between basketball and hip-hop culture, Griffith underscored the potential of leveraging music to broaden the appeal of sports among younger demographics. Having recently worked with BBL on their entertainment portfolio, cricket Australia, and, more recently, the Women’s World Cup, Griffith knows something about integrating music seamlessly into the sports ecosystem, enriching fan engagement and driving tangible business outcomes.
According to Griffith, there are two specific kinds of fans that make up any kind of “fandom,” be it music, sport, or another cultural phenomenon.
- Core fans: Core fans are at the center of a target, and they are the ones who buy the merch and the season ticket and attend every game there. They’ve been there, and they’ve spent a lot of time as rights holders and as brands cultivating that fandom.
- Casual fans: This is where the potential lies. These fans might go to a couple of games a season, follow the team’s progress, and could, eventually, become core fans.
“With music and other cultural touch points really the potential is in that periphery fan. When you’re talking to the core sports fans, there is actually an opportunity to broaden the appeal of marketing campaigns as brands and actually codes as well to bring in those periphery fans and generate long-term value,” Griffith said.
As the discussion unfolded, the panellists explored the evolving dynamics of fan engagement in the digital age. They emphasised the need for sports brands to adapt to changing consumer preferences, harnessing technology and innovation to enhance the fan experience. From immersive AR/VR experiences to real-time data overlays, the convergence of sports and technology promised exciting possibilities for the future of sports entertainment.
“There’s some interesting things happening in technology and how those two worlds kind of come together. I’ve seen some stuff where they’re using real-time data to overlay characters from Toy Story, for example, so kids can come into the game, making it more accessible to them,” Griffith said.
“There’s going to be some amazing things happening in AR and VR to showcase not only human quality and human progress but also to enhance what’s happening in real-time”.
In the closing remarks, the panellists reflected on sports’ enduring allure and capacity to inspire human progress. While acknowledging the importance of preserving sports’ purity, they also embraced the evolving landscape of sports entertainment. With a keen eye on emerging trends and a commitment to authenticity, sports brands were poised to navigate the evolving terrain of fan engagement successfully.
“What must be made pure is that sport that must be sport. I think the biggest confusion that people make it that sport is entertainment. If you do that, everything else can come from that,” said Smith. “With ambition, persistence, supportive brands and the engagement of the music industry, we’re going to face a fascinating jigsaw puzzle”.
