<p>In South Africa today those who lead sport are facing increasing scrutiny which has inevitably resulted in questioning governance practices. The transition of many sports from<br /> predominantly volunteer administered organizations anchored in an amateur ethos, to professionally managed entities catering to a more sophisticated market place has created<br /> unique challenges for the governance of sport sponsorship. This evolution gives rise to possible conceptual linkage between sport sponsorship and corporate governance or none<br /> thereof. This study focuses on the ABSA-Premier Soccer League (PSL) sponsorship transaction as a case study to explore this linkage. The research is aimed at finding the nexus<br /> between sport sponsorship and corporate governance principles, namely accountability and transparency in the conclusion of this transaction.</p> <p><br /> The research consists of four phases / literature review which provides a detailed analysis of all primary and secondary material available on this topic. The second phase is a qualitative<br /> case study research methodology which comprises of in-depth interviews with targeted stakeholders. The third part presents the research findings and discussion section, and lastly<br /> the way forward through reflections and recommendations including highlighting potential future research areas.</p> <p><br /> This work is timely when there has been generally a heightened evolution in sport sponsorship and its focus was to explore the nexus and compliance to the founding principles<br /> of the organizations (laws of governance). Factually, good corporate governance aims at ensuring a higher degree of transparency in an organization by encouraging full disclosure of<br /> transactions in the company accounts as well as accountability. Academics have been exploring the notion of sports sponsorship and corporate governance with much of the<br /> debates grounded on understanding its commercial value.</p> <p><br /> The focus for this study is on the conceptual nexus or non-thereof, between sponsorship and corporate governance. Information was collected through in-depth and experience interviews,<br /> documented reviews and analysis (such as the review and analysis of the constitution of the South Africa football Association, PSL, financial/banking sector policy regulations, South<br /> African Sports Act, corporate governance reports, annual reports, scholarly journals, academic books, conference papers and Parliamentary Monitoring Group documents etc. to<br /> mention but a few.</p>

<p>In South Africa today those who lead sport are facing increasing scrutiny which has inevitably resulted in questioning governance practices. The transition of many sports from<br /> predominantly volunteer administered organizations anchored in an amateur ethos, to professionally managed entities catering to a more sophisticated market place has created<br /> unique challenges for the governance of sport sponsorship. This evolution gives rise to possible conceptual linkage between sport sponsorship and corporate governance or none<br /> thereof. This study focuses on the ABSA-Premier Soccer League (PSL) sponsorship transaction as a case study to explore this linkage. The research is aimed at finding the nexus<br /> between sport sponsorship and corporate governance principles, namely accountability and transparency in the conclusion of this transaction.</p> <p><br /> The research consists of four phases / literature review which provides a detailed analysis of all primary and secondary material available on this topic. The second phase is a qualitative<br /> case study research methodology which comprises of in-depth interviews with targeted stakeholders. The third part presents the research findings and discussion section, and lastly<br /> the way forward through reflections and recommendations including highlighting potential future research areas.</p> <p><br /> This work is timely when there has been generally a heightened evolution in sport sponsorship and its focus was to explore the nexus and compliance to the founding principles<br /> of the organizations (laws of governance). Factually, good corporate governance aims at ensuring a higher degree of transparency in an organization by encouraging full disclosure of<br /> transactions in the company accounts as well as accountability. Academics have been exploring the notion of sports sponsorship and corporate governance with much of the<br /> debates grounded on understanding its commercial value.</p> <p><br /> The focus for this study is on the conceptual nexus or non-thereof, between sponsorship and corporate governance. Information was collected through in-depth and experience interviews,<br /> documented reviews and analysis (such as the review and analysis of the constitution of the South Africa football Association, PSL, financial/banking sector policy regulations, South<br /> African Sports Act, corporate governance reports, annual reports, scholarly journals, academic books, conference papers and Parliamentary Monitoring Group documents etc. to<br /> mention but a few.</p>

Magister Commercii - MCom / In South Africa today those who lead sport are facing increasing scrutiny which has inevitably resulted in questioning governance practices. The transition of many sports from predominantly volunteer administered organizations anchored in an amateur ethos, to professionally managed entities catering to a more sophisticated market place has created unique challenges for the governance of sport sponsorship. This evolution gives rise to possible conceptual linkage between sport sponsorship and corporate governance or none thereof. This study focuses on the ABSA-Premier Soccer League (PSL) sponsorship transaction as a case study to explore this linkage. The research is aimed at finding the nexus between sport sponsorship and corporate governance principles, namely accountability and transparency in the conclusion of this transaction. The research consists of four phases; literature review which provides a detailed analysis of all primary and secondary material available on this topic. The second phase is a qualitative case study research methodology which comprises of in-depth interviews with targeted stakeholders. The third part presents the research findings and discussion section, and lastly the way forward through reflections and recommendations including highlighting potential future research areas. This work is timely when there has been generally a heightened evolution in sport sponsorship and its focus was to explore the nexus and compliance to the founding principles of the organizations (laws of governance). Factually, good corporate governance aims at ensuring a higher degree of transparency in an organization by encouraging full disclosure of transactions in the company accounts as well as accountability. Academics have been exploring the notion of sports sponsorship and corporate governance with much of the debates grounded on understanding its commercial value. The focus for this study is on the conceptual nexus or non-thereof, between sponsorship and corporate governance. Information was collected through in-depth and experience interviews, documented reviews and analysis (such as the review and analysis of the constitution of the South Africa football Association, PSL, financial/banking sector policy regulations, South African Sports Act, corporate governance reports, annual reports, scholarly journals, academic books, conference papers and Parliamentary Monitoring Group documents etc. to mention but a few. / South Africa

Sports sponsorship accounts for the majority of global sponsorship revenue and is a mutually beneficial business relationship between two parties -the sponsor and the sponsee. The most successful sports sponsorships are based on a good relationship between the sports entity and its sponsor, however, the relationship between the sponsor and the sponsee is difficult to understand due to the lack oftheoretical and managerial implications of the area. Thus, the purpose of this thesis is to provide a better understanding of how sport entities and their existing sponsors manage their interorganizational relationship. In order to reach the stated purpose, research questions are derived focusing on the exchange and the maintenance of the sport sponsor relationship. Based on the research questions, an extensive literature review is conducted landing in a proposed conceptual framework. A qualitative case study approach is used to collect data through semi-structured interviews with two national and two international professional sports organizations. The result of the study shows how the existing relationship between sports organizations and their sponsors is managed. The most valued aspect in a sport sponsorship relationship is to develop a long-term partnership and that the parties involved are committed to the relationship and work actively to make it mutually beneficial. The sponsors are for the most partincluded in the activities of the sport entity, which posits high-quality communication as an essential tool in maintaining a successful relationship. In order to maximize the value generated from the offered benefits, the partners must be willing to utilize the full potential in participating in the sport entity’s various activities.