Game for action
Kathy O'Meara on why the starter gun must fire on a proper funding plan for Irish sports

At the Beijing Olympic the dearth of sponsor billboards in the Birds Nest stadium was palpable. After the disaster of Atlanta '96, when billboards virtually destroyed the city, the Olympic image and ideals reasserted themselves in China; with sponsor names tucked away discreetly and the battle of the brands only coyly asserting itself.

One of the crudest methods of ambush marketing is to hold a press conference using a major sports star. Carl Lewis, the US track hero, was sponsored by McDonald's. Asked for his opinion of drug-taking, Lewis replied: ‘I say French fries, not drugs. If they taste McDonald's French fries, they'll stay off the drugs, believe me.” Subtle.

The symbiosis between sport and economics is nothing new. After all, in an increasingly complex promotional landscape, successful sports sponsors can create a sophisticated brand-building marketing platform reaching consumers on an emotionally-charged level.

But marketers are happy to ride the coat tails of the big ticket events without investing in the chosen sport at a more fundamental level. Sponsorship spend across major sporting events reached €103 million last year, but clubs in Ireland are dangerously under-funded.

Jimmy Jennings, general secretary of the Irish Amateur Weightlifting Association (IAWLA), said the problem for most Olympic sports like weightlifting, fencing and wrestling is they only attract modest attendances. Sports media in Ireland is dominated by Gaelic games, soccer, rugby, golf and horse-racing and sponsors follow in line.

Jennings said Ireland will never have the level of government support that China had in Beijing, culminating in their eight weightlifting golds and one silver, but we should model ourselves on Spain, France and Italy, where they pay full-time wages to coaches, athletes and provide millions across all sports to identify and support talent development.

“The level of funding for the smaller Olympic sports in Ireland is negligible,” Jennings said, “with sports surviving on the equivalent of half of the average industrial wage for an entire year. We can't have full time coaches and full time athletes. Until we do, success at world or Olympic level will be sporadic, to say the least,” he added.

Government apathy for sports funding was shown by the withdrawal this year of the annual subsidies for the National Aquatic Centre (NAC), a venue which is due to become a European multi-sport centre of excellence. As a result, core NAC club activities, such as swimming, diving and water polo, have been put under financial threat.

Former British prime minister John Major once said that “money is the route of all progress…at local and at national level”. His contention was that sport can easily become a political football, yet is an integral part of society, not an add-on.

But if the Irish government passes the buck and National Lottery funding remains thin on the ground, can sport in this country survive on corporate sponsorship? Irish swimming, in particular, finds securing public or private sponsorship challenging.

ACE PROSPECT Lynsey O'Neill, 17, from Newtownabbey, Co Antrim, is an up-and-coming tennis star in pursuit of a sponsor. Nestle has supported tennis with its Kit Kat parks tournament.

The recent scandals cast a long shadow. It is unlikely Ireland will produce a Rebecca Adlington, the 19-year-old from Mansfield who set a new Olympic world record in the women's 800-metre freestyle in Beijing, any time soon. Yet it's not for want of talent.

David Malone, Ireland's paralympic double silver medallist who was in Beijing, said Irish swimming's future stars are in today's club programmes. “These athletes need to be supported early on, not just once they reach elite standards,” Malone said. “We need to give athletes and coaches greater access to facilities and training environments.”

Paddy Lynch, managing director, Brandforce, said given the downturn in the economy, sponsorship budgets will be the first to be cut. If we are to compete at international level we need to drive an elite athlete programme with national training.

“I'd question whether funds should be spent on sending athletes to the Olympics in 2012, unless they are medal contenders,” Lynch told Marketing. “Local clubs cannot be expected to bring athletes through to a medal at the Olympics given their limited resources. We need a national approach backed by the government.”

Team GB ruled the waves in Qingdao. Writing in The Irish Times, David O'Brien referred to former Education Minister Mary Hanafin's suggestion about putting sailing on the school curriculum. By funding schools, sailing clubs are investing in the future.

What's in it for sponsors at club level? They want a return, rather than the warm glow of altruism. But spend on a slow-burn basis reaps rewards. Witness what Nestle has done in tennis with its Kit Kat parks programme, giving the brand ownership at the grassroots.

Perhaps what is needed is a good PR programme for Irish sport to encourage sustained investment. Otherwise, it is unlikely we will experience the endorphin rush of Irish glory at the next Olympics when they get underway in London in 2012.