The thesis deals with the sponsorship in small sports organizations. The theoretical part of thesis specifies the term sponsorship, sports sponsorship and also defines the concept of a small sports organizations and their importance in sport. In the practical part, we used a mixed method approach. The first phase was qualitative survey and we conducted semi-structured interviews in 9 sports organizations. The second part is a quantitative survey among officials and members of sports clubs and fans (the target group of advert). The results reveal the level of sponsorship within the small sports organizations and define its importance for these organizations and the sponsors itself. The work provides useful advice for sports organizations in acquisition of new sponsors.

Background: In recent years, sponsorship has become an important and heavily implemented marketing communications tool, and the significance of sponsorship is especially seen within the context of sports. Despite the heavy implementation of sponsorship, both in a team context and on an individual level, existing sponsorship literature has been strongly focused on sponsorship in a team context, thus neglecting the individual aspect of sponsorship. Furthermore, previous literature has highlighted the importance of implementing clear objectives into the overall strategic marketing plan to respond to difficulties in tracing and evaluating sponsorship. The lack of existing literature on individual sponsorship and the need for clear objectives raises questions about managerial motivations behind the implementation of sponsorship. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to investigate the underlying managerial motivations behind the implementation of individual sponsorship in outdoor recreation businesses in Sweden. In doing so, this study aims to reduce existing literature gaps within sponsorship. Method: A qualitative collective case study with an abductive approach was conducted utilizing semi- structured interviews with 5 relevant participants who are working in outdoor recreation brands within the Swedish market. Conclusion: Findings of this study revealed that building credibility through the use of individual sponsorship was found to be a highly desired outcome, and strong motivation behind implementation. By transferring meaning, such as credibility, from well known and2  trusted athletes to the brand through associations, the brand in question wished to achieve increased strength of communicated brand messages. The development and strengthening of the brand community was identified as another key motivation behind individual sponsorship. Through the use of individual athletes' mix of properties such as performance, social ability, and own network was believed to strengthen brand community. Another finding was the motivation to achieve brand awareness-through high media exposure using leveraging as a tool. Lastly, the research found that except for implementing sponsored athletes in the marketing activities, utilizing the athletes in the product development process was the motivation behind implementation of individual sponsorship.

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Title: “The influence of managers personal preferences on sport sponsorship in small-medium sized businesses - A qualitative case study of the effect on brand equity” Date: 2023-05-23Level: Bachelor Thesis in International MarketingAuthors: Emma Salqvist & Hanna Hedin Supervisor: Olga Rauhut Kompaniets Examiner: Fawzi Halila Aim: This study aims to provide an analysis of how the managers’ personal preferences on sport sponsorship has an impact on the sponsoring company’s brand equity in small-medium sized companies. Methodology: The study has a qualitative research method with a deductive approach. A conceptual model was made based on a theoretical framework of findings from previous studies. Three main themes were highlighted, including brand equity, sport sponsorships in brand strategy and managerial aspects of sport sponsorship. Empirical material was collected through six semi-structured interviews with managers in a decision making role within sport sponsorship decisions. Further the results were thematically analyzed. Findings: In small-medium sized companies, sport sponsorship is often driven by managers’ personal objectives which conflicts with brand strategy. When personal objectives dominate the sponsorship decisions, the effect on brand equity tends to be limited in comparison to strategic decisions. Keywords – Sport Sponsorship, Brand Strategy, Brand Equity, Managers’ roll, Biased Decisions, Sponsorship Objectives Paper type – Bachelor thesis

På grund av att dagens samhälle kantas av ett informationsöverflöd måste organisationer hitta andra vägar för att träffa rätt med sin kommunikation. Tidigare kommunicerades varumärkens budskap ut via traditionella medier men nya trender har medfört nya kommunikationsmetoder som sponsring via idrottsarenor med olika kommunikativa målsättningar. Då mycket av den tidigare forskningen på kommunikation via idrottsarenor har ett internationellt perspektiv med kommersiella aktörer tar denna studie istället avstamp i Sverige med hopp om att bidra med ett nytt perspektiv. Syftet med studien är att skapa ökad förståelse för kommersiella, kommunala och ideella aktörers kommunikativa arbete med arenasponsring. För att besvara studiens syfte och frågeställningar har en kvalitativ metod använts i form av samtalsintervjuer. Samtalsintervjuerna har genomförts med sju strategiskt utvalda respondenter som verkar inom kommersiella, kommunala och ideella organisationer och som fick avge sin syn på fenomenet arenasponsring. Resultatet visar att organisationernas arbete med att kommunicera via en idrottsarena handlar dels om att namnsätta en arena, dels att kommunicera på plats i arenan eller i egna kanaler samt genom att ha egna relationsskapande aktiviteter i anknytning till arenan. Genom arenasponsringen så kan de skapa kännedom om sitt varumärke, öka försäljningen och skapa relationer med sina intressenter. Trots att arbetet med kommunikationen via arenasponsringen är likvärdig för den övervägande delen av respondenterna skiljer sig dock deras incitament åt. Gemensamt för den övervägande delen av respondenterna är att de belyser det faktum att genom arenasponsringen så gagnar de stor publicitet i media.

Title: Management of the sport event Chance 3x3 Tour Objectives: The aim of this master thesis is to evaluate the organization of the sport event and suggest concrete arrangements for improvement of the upcoming years. Methods: The analytical part of the thesis was conducted through the qualitative research. Qualitative research methods, which are used in this work, are hidden observation, document analysis, unstructured interview and SWOT analysis. Results: There were suggested some recommendations on the basis of the SWOT analysis for the upcoming events. Analysis of the action revealed some shortcomings that should be eliminated thanks to these recommendations. Key words: Sport event, project management, sport sponsorship, SWOT analysis, 3x3 basketball

A lot has happened to the Swedish sport landscape over the years, especially in regards to commercialization and professionalization processes. A result of this development is that many companies today want to be associated with sports and therefore choose to invest large parts of their marketing budget in sports sponsorship. The motives behind these investments have long been characterized by increasing sales, but as the sports sponsorship landscape has changed, many new motives, but also new alternative ways of working with the phenomenon have been developed. In relation to this background, the purpose of the study was therefore to create an understanding of what motives four Swedish companies have with sports sponsorship, and how the companies reason between sports sponsorship at individual versus club level. To achieve the purpose of the study, a qualitative method has been used where semi-structured interviews have been conducted with four different companies engaged in sports sponsorship in the Swedish market. To gain a deeper understanding of the investigated phenomenon, two complementary theories have been used. The A-ERIK-model has been used as the main theory because it focuses on the motives behind sponsorship, and further the exchange theory has been utilized to complete the actual relationship impact on the exchange at a sponsorship. The results show that the motives at a general level look quite similar for companies regardless of which sports sponsorship they engage in, however, it is possible to distinguish some differences in how companies reason about sports sponsorship at individual compared to club level, with emphasis on relationships.

Title: Sport event management: Jizerská 50 Goal: The aim of the master thesis is to create proposal and suggestions for the 50th Jizerska 50 and the next upcoming event. Methods: In this thesis was used the qualitative analysis of Jizerska 50 - form of case study, participant observation, semi-structured interview and complemented by the SWOT analysis. Results: The result of master thesis is the set of proposals, which are based on the knowledge and results of Jizerska 50 in previous years and its SWOT analysis. Analysis revealed the possibility of applying new variations for the 50th Jizerska 50 and the next upcoming event. Also suggestions for project management effectiveness, sponsorship and event program. Key words: project management, cross-country skiing, organization, sport sponsorship, SWOT analysis, marketing mix.

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.

Purpose: To investigate how attitudes of hockey supporters change towards a sponsoring company depending on fan type and team commitment. Background: Sponsorship has become a widely accepted and used as a communication tool. In Sweden, sponsoring is a large part of all advertising conducted in the country. Previous studies within the subject of sponsorship show that generally sponsorship is a good affair for companies that engage in it. When it comes to sports sponsorship, hockey is the most developed sport in Sweden. Sports sponsorship is also an area where negative effects could occur due to sponsoring and the fact that many people are very passionate when it comes to sports and their favorite teams. Considering the massive amounts that companies invest in sponsoring it is of great interest to further investigate the effects of such activities. There is quite little research conducted within sports sponsoring in Sweden and therefore it is of interest both from businesses as well as the academic world to investigate the effects of sponsorship in a Swedish context. The main focus of this study is to investigate possible positive and negative attitudes towards sponsoring companies that sponsor different teams as well as effects on brand recall based on fan commitment. Method: In order to answer the purpose of this thesis a deductive approach was applied by collecting quantitative data from an experiment, control group and a follow-up study. Theories and previous research in the subject area was used in order to establish hypothesis that later has been tested.  The data retrieved through the research was processed and analyzed using SPSS. Conclusion: The results show that attitudes towards the sponsor are positive when associated with the supported team and negative when associated with the rival team. Fans viewer frequency did not have a significant impact on positive attitudes towards the supported team while fan commitment had a strong impact on negative attitudes towards the sponsor of the rival team. Brand recall was higher with highly committed fans and is correlated with fan commitment. It is concluded that negative attitudes are easily invoked by fan commitment while it is not as easy to build positive attitude with repeated viewings.