• by Paul Gough , March 16, 2003

That’s the consensus of representatives from two companies heavily invested in the Olympics and other major sporting events and a media buyer who helps his clients in arranging sports sponsorships. That buyer, Wieden & Kennedy director of global media buying Tom Winner, said his agency finds data from MRI and elsewhere about product usage and other variables important. But he said it’s not the only factor when choosing a sponsorship. “You get to the point where you don’t want to depend on the numbers so much,” Winner told the World Congress of Sports seminar on advertising and sports sponsorships last week in New York.

Winner said the excitement generated– and the passion of its fans – are what sets sporting events like the Olympics and the World Cup apart. “It’s world class. It’s the ultimate,” said Winner. He said this degree of passion is what drives his clients – like Nike and Brand Jordan – to get involved. Winner said the opportunities have to be right. “If it’s too mucked up with signage or cumbersome marketing, we just don’t want to deal with it,” Winner said.

Jackie Woodward, VP of worldwide marketing at McDonald’s Corp., agreed. “The emphasis has to be on meaningful [marketing]. The days of slapping a log on something and expect consumers to pay attention [are gone] … It’s wallpaper,” Woodward said. MasterCard VP Bob Cramer said there’s a key question surrounding any potential sponsorship deal: “Can we integrate?”

Cramer said one way MasterCard deals with the issue is to demand exclusivity. In its multiyear deal with Major League Baseball, MasterCard is the sole credit card company at the league level. Cramer said that if there were other credit-card companies sponsoring Major League Baseball, it would diminish the value of MasterCard’s sponsorship. “I’m more concerned with keeping the category of credit card pure” over clutter, Cramer said.