Are you willing to sponsor?
Are you ready to explore the transformative power of athlete sponsorship for your brand? Click here to learn more about how sponsorship can help brands grow and thrive in the exciting world of motorsports.
By Riccardo Tafà| Posted July 28, 2023 | In Sport Sponsorship, Sports Marketing
In the competitive world of sports, securing a sponsorship deal can make a substantial difference in a team’s success and financial stability. However, one crucial aspect that is often overlooked is the timing of when to sign such a deal. The process of negotiating a sports sponsorship agreement can be lengthy, often taking around 6 months due to the sponsor’s internal processes. To ensure the utmost success and effectiveness of the partnership, early engagement between the team and the sponsor is paramount. In this article, we will delve into the significance of selecting the right time to sign a sports sponsorship deal and how it can be a game-changer for both parties involved.
Early engagement with potential sponsors is the foundation upon which successful sports sponsorship deals are built. It provides an opportunity for the sponsor to thoroughly understand the team, its values, and the unique assets that can be leveraged through the partnership. Additionally, it allows the team to comprehend the sponsor’s objectives, expectations, and how the collaboration can be mutually beneficial.
By initiating the conversation and relationship-building process well in advance, teams can present themselves in the best light possible. This early understanding also enables sponsors to make well-informed decisions and align their brand with the team that genuinely resonates with their target audience.
To ensure the seamless execution of a sports sponsorship deal, selecting the right timeframe for signing the agreement is crucial. Research and experience have shown that the ideal timing for signing such a deal is approximately 2-3 months before the first race or event of the season. This allows ample time for both parties to finalize the details and preparations necessary for a successful launch.
Furthermore, early engagement should ideally start 8-9 months before the next championship or sports season. This early preparation period facilitates effective partnership activation from day one, providing ample time for creative campaigns, marketing materials, and collaborative efforts to be planned and executed.
When a sports sponsorship deal is signed at the optimal time, both the team and the sponsor can avoid unnecessary delays in leveraging the partnership. Delays may result in missed marketing opportunities, reduced exposure, and the potential for missed connections with the target audience.
By avoiding last-minute negotiations and rushed decision-making, both parties can focus on maximizing the benefits of the sponsorship. This includes creating impactful marketing campaigns, engaging fans and spectators, and generating positive media coverage, all of which contribute to increased brand visibility and awareness.
In conclusion, selecting the right time to sign a sports sponsorship deal is a critical factor that should never be underestimated. Early engagement between the team and the sponsor allows for a deeper understanding of each other’s objectives and assets, setting the stage for a successful and fruitful partnership. By signing the deal 2-3 months before the first race and initiating engagement 8-9 months before the championship, both parties can capitalize on the partnership’s potential and avoid any unnecessary delays in leveraging the sponsorship to its fullest.
For sports teams seeking to secure sponsorship, timing is everything. By implementing a well-thought-out timeline and adhering to the optimal timeframe, teams can position themselves as desirable partners, securing valuable sponsorship deals that drive success on and off the field. Remember, timing can be the game-changer that propels your team and brand to new heights of success in the world of sports sponsorship.
Are you ready to explore the transformative power of athlete sponsorship for your brand? Click here to learn more about how sponsorship can help brands grow and thrive in the exciting world of motorsports.
Managing Director for RTR Sports, Riccardo graduated in law at the University of Bologna. He began his career in London in PR, then started working in two and four-wheelers. A brief move to Monaco followed before returning to Italy. There he founded RTR, first a consulting firm and then a sports marketing company which, eventually, he moved back to London.
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By doing so, we are convinced that we are shortening the value chain, saving time and money. However, these DYI methods are anything but risk-free and what initially appears to be a competitive advantage soon turns into a problem that is difficult to resolve. That’s why there are agencies. And this is why you should rely on us for your sponsorships.
When first approaching a sponsorship or sports marketing project, it is difficult to know immediately which stakeholders are correct, what the decision flow is, and what the right timelines are for each process. Sports is a very specialized field of action, and fitting effectively into its paths can take a lot of time and therefore money. We, on the other hand, know referents and spheres of action and know who to talk to, when and how. So you are also more effective.
Sports is an immense passion, and for our heart colors we would be willing to do anything. But business is a different business, and it is important to make the best possible strategic decisions based on independent research, statistics and reliable data. A sports marketing and sports sponsorship agency like RTR has an objective, 360-degree picture of the scenario and can tell you what is really best for you: which sport, which athlete, which team. This is because we possess a great deal of data and information on ratings, segmentation and attitudes. Because the numbers don’t lie. Never.
Activations are the real heart of sports sponsorship. Without them, there remains only a blank sticker on a motorcycle, car or uniform and no contact with the public, no emotional connection, no impact on the bottom line. Then how do you do it? It certainly won’t be the teams or the athletes who will help you leverage sponsorship and enjoy the many marketing rights you have paid for. To bring out the best in a sports marketing project you need an agency that knows how to use sponsorship to engage the fanbase on the Web, to reach out to Shopping Centers, to organize hospitality, to develop B2B and B2C opportunities, and to get “your” athletes in front of millions of potential consumers.
Would you ever go to the dealer who sold you the car and ask if the competitor’s car is better? No, of course. So, how do you expect to get firm measurements of the effectiveness of your sponsorship if you do not rely on someone super partes? At RTR, we have always worked with independent third-party agencies that allow us to know the return on any exposure of your brand on TV and in the media. In addition, we believe in calculating ROI as the ultimate measure of your success-so we can tell you for every penny you spend how much you are making.
We have been involved in sports sponsorship and sports marketing for more than 15 years. We are consultants in the sense that our goal is to maximize your investment, but we are also an agency that manages the project from start to finish. We have been doing this since 1995 with passion and professionalism, following three principles that have become cornerstones of our business: independence, verticality and transparency.
I would like to highlight the fact that one of the qualities of RTR is its great ability to approach the sponsorship scenario strategically, together with its passionate attitude, its amazing enthusiasm for solving problems, and its high level of professionalism.
Gianluca Degliesposti
Executive Director Server&Storage EMEA
Eurosport is truly delighted with its business relationship with Riccardo Tafà, who has become extremely popular, thanks to his detailed knowledge of the sports marketing sector and his highly diligent attitude to work.
Francois Ribeiro
Commercial Director
Passion and Expertise are the features that I have found in RTR since the very beginning. Serious and reliable professionals but also very helpful, nice and open-mind people, willing to listen and compare different ideas. All the values in which RTR believes make this agency a partner, not just a supplier, a partner with whom we have had the opportunity to achieve significant commercial results in term of success and image.
Luca Pacitto
Head of Communication
We have been working with RTR Sports Marketing for over 10 years. The objectives and the programmes of collaboration continue to be renewed and to grow with mutual satisfaction. I believe RTR is a team of great professionals led by Riccardo Tafà, who I consider a manager of exceptional skills and with a great passion for his work.
Lucio Cecchinello
Team Principal
I have known and worked with Riccardo Tafà since 1995 when we collaborated for the first time on a project for the Williams Formula 1 team. Several clients followed. After leaving Williams to work for Gerhard Berger then owner of the Toro Rosso F1 Team, I turned again to Riccardo to seek his help in finding a tool supplier for the team and Riccardo duly obliged with an introduction to USAG, a partnership with Toro Rosso which endured for five years. I recently started a new role as Group Commercial Director for the renowned Andretti Autosport organisation and I find myself working with Riccardo once again on a number of interesting projects. Why has this relationship with Riccardo endured ? He’s smart, knows the commercial side of sport inside out and back to front and he’s honest and trustworthy. Riccardo Tafà is a “doer” not a “talker”: in over 20 years I have never had a dispute either with him or with a company that he has introduced and each partnership introduced by Riccardo has delivered quantifiable ROI to rights holder and sponsor alike. I can think of no better testimonial of Riccardo’s diligence, knowledge, contact base and hard work than that.
Jim Wright
Group Commercial Director
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