Over the last two weeks, international sailing series SailGP has made a trio of significant moves regarding its sponsorship portfolio, during the build-up to its fifth season.
The Emirates airline has expanded and extended its tie-up with the series, becoming a global partner (as well as a title sponsor for the UK Sail Grand Prix), while worldwide logistics heavyweight DP World has entered into a deal covering SailGP for the first time.
Luxury watch brand Rolex, meanwhile, has become the first-ever SailGP title sponsor, in a significant upgrade to its existing tie-up with the series (it has been a sponsor since the inaugural season in 2019) that runs for the next 10 years.
These deals were all unveiled in the days leading into the SailGP season five curtain-raiser, which took place off the coast of Dubai on November 23 and 24 (Saturday and Sunday).
The three partnerships - all with well-seasoned brands in terms of sports sponsorships - signify major commercial expansion for SailGP, especially as it launches a season featuring a record 14 races across 13 countries and five continents on the back of record viewership across 2023-24. Four countries are making their SailGP hosting debuts, as are three teams (Brazil, France, and Italy).
Amid the partnerships being announced, Sportcal (GlobalData Sport) speaks to Andy Thompson, SailGP’s managing director, about why now is the right time to do these deals, how the series’ calendar is partly dictated by its commercial partners, and if brands not jumping on board now are missing the boat.
Thompson, who has been at SailGP since it launched, is keen to start by explaining that SailGP, is now in very much “a new era.”
He says: “Our growth has been more significant than we expected …
“We’ve got new teams, markets and athletes, and we’re approaching an era where we aspire to be amongst the top-tier of global sports properties.
“We’re seeing that having a consistent product in this sport is the future, and we think we’ve got the right product at the right time.”
Turning first to the Rolex deal, which Thompson describes as the most significant ever seen in sailing, he says making that brand the overall title sponsor felt like the natural next step.
Rolex has been a major sponsor for the last five years, since SailGP first launched, and amongst various assets, is a partner of the in-house docuseries, Racing on the Edge.
As Thompson puts it: “The thinking was, how can we go to the next level with them? They’re already our presenting partner so it was the only place they could go to increase their visibility and the partnership as a whole.
“They see SailGP as the future of global racing, it was a natural conversation over the summer. There was mutual intent to solidify the relationship.
“10 years is a validation of all the work we’ve done with them, and their trust in us (and vice versa). That sets the tone for the next decade.”
He adds that “if you have a title partner, they need to be long-term - in this case, both sides wanted that.”
On the subject of deal length, he feels that even the Emirates tie-up, stretching across half a decade, is impressive: “Five years, for the sport of sailing - even that’s unheard of. For properties like the America’s Cup, deals are mostly for two or three years.
“Five years signifying a very long deal sounds crazy across other sports, but for sailing it’s a significant step forward.
“For all these new sponsors, the hope is we all push each other along. We believe we sit alongside their main sporting deals … I don’t see any distinction between us and their other partners.”
That is something SailGP is keen to emphasize about all the new partners - their experience at sponsoring major sporting properties.
Rolex has tie-ups in place across sports including tennis (recently expanding its deal with the women's game's WTA), golf, and motor racing, Emirates is active across a myriad of sports including soccer (title sponsoring the English FA Cup) and cricket, while DP World has a title sponsorship deal in place with golf’s top-tier European Tour.
As Thompson puts it: “There are a few things we want to achieve in the future - if they [the new partners] can help us with those through their experience with other sports properties that’s fantastic.”
In terms of how these deals sit alongside SailGP’s public messaging around sustainability and running in an eco-friendly manner, when questioned about the Emirates tie-up Thompson says the airline is “committed to reducing aviation’s carbon footprint, they’ve made multi-billion dollar investments in modern eco-friendly technology …”
He also comments, as a general point: “Yes, we’ve got sustainability targets, as all sports properties should, but we’re more than that as a business - in our view, we’re developing better solutions alongside our partners through tech advancements, that’s how we and all our industries will hit our targets.
“The world can’t stop logistics and travel - so how do we work with our partners to create better solutions.
“In our opinion, we’re developing better solutions alongside our partners through tech advancements, that’s how we’re going to hit our targets."
The DP World deal, for example, will see that firm and SailGP work on reducing the carbon footprint from a logistics point of view, around how to make transportation to and from races as efficient as possible.
One of the ways SailGP is increasing inventory and assets which its commercial partners can gain traction from, is by increasing the number of events on its race calendar - there are 14 scheduled for 2024-25, up from 13 in 2023-24.
In terms of the optimum number of events for the sailing series, Thompson says SailGP is working towards a goal of 18 races per year, “and then we’ll see where we are.”
On that front, he adds that while “there is a limit,” the series’ teams and athletes “understand this is the right trajectory and more events will benefit them and sailing as a whole.
“We believe providing more events is one route to providing our partners with more value. As that number goes up, it adds inventory and return on investment for our partners.”
Sometimes the partnerships can also help bring about the events - the UK is one of Emirates’ key markets, meaning the brand (which also sponsors the Great Britain SailGP team) is only too happy to contribute to an event in Portsmouth, the first UK race since in three seasons.
Swiss brand Rolex, meanwhile, will be supporting the series’ event in Geneva.
Thompson says: “It’s a combination of getting the calendar and sponsorship deals in first - we very much consult with our major partners around the calendar. With Emirates, they want an event in their home market (Dubai-based) and also the UK is a significant market for them, hence the Portsmouth race.
“It just so happened we were looking for a UK event naturally.”
He also says that “it’s not just your partners’ needs, it’s all about finding a balance … We need to bear in mind sailing conditions and facilities as well, making sure we can deliver a great product.”
Aside from increasing the number of events, SailGP is also in some cases laying on extra inventory for sponsors to put their names to - Emirates, for example, will be sponsoring the event umpires - the series has its own version of the Virtual Assistant Referee system best-known for its use in soccer, and Emirates is now set to put its name to that asset.
Indeed, the series has been holding back a number of assets with new partnerships in mind, the managing director confirms.
In terms of the total number of major partners that the series is looking to bring on board, Thompson says there is space for eight such deals - bearing in mind the current calendar.
In addition, he feels the various teams have “some really strong partners as well, there are different routes available for brands.”
For example, the German outfit is sponsored by Deutsche Bank, the new Italian side has Red Bull as a title partner, while Mubadala holds the same designation for the Brazil SailGP team, which also made its debut over the weekend.
The US team, meanwhile, announced financial solutions firm Apex as a 2024-25 sponsor late last month - the US will stage three SailGP races this season.
At the same time as this trio of major series-wide partnerships has been unveiled, several major broadcast deals have also been disclosed.
TNT Sports has taken over rights in the UK, while in Brazil, major broadcaster Globo has become a series partner (alongside existing rights holder BandSport).
These deals add to the key tie-ups already in place, including agreements with CBS in the US and with public-service broadcaster ZDF in Germany through 2027.
As Thompson puts it: “Our sponsors and broadcasters work hand in hand, the brands need the media exposure and return on investment that our media partners deliver.”
The series, he says, is delivering the highest US viewing figures in terms of current sailing series, with “significant hours free-to-air on CBS.”
Indeed, SailGP proclaimed major increases in viewership throughout 2023-24, saying that across all races, the total figure came to 193 million, an increase of 48% from the equivalent 2022-23 number.
Sponsors can gain brand exposure on SailGP's broadcasts through the series' LiveLine FX technology, SailGP’s in-house on-screen graphics and visuals package. Through this technology, the names of different partners can appear on-screen depending on which broadcaster in which market is taking the feed.
Emirates, for example, can be given greater prominence via SailGP's Dubai broadcast partner through LiveLine FX.
In general, Thompson feels the series in its current form presents “the most compelling offer in sailing … We have 12 boats on the start line for example, instead of some formats having two.”
He adds that, as a comparison, “I’m not sure two race cars on the Formula 1 grid would be a compelling product.
“In general, it’s been made clear to us that there was a gap in the market for a racing product on water that appeals broadly, that’s consistent. That’s never really existed before.
“Across sports in general, though, there’s a lot of up-and-coming properties so it feels like a relatively crowded market.
Thompson expects to see in the next few years which of those leagues and properties “stand strong” - he says that SailGP is “in a really good position to be one of those and be here for the long-term.”
He adds: “We’ve already demonstrated to our existing partners that we can deliver market-leading return on investment to them, that’s what Emirates and Rolex have experienced.”
