Terry Lefton

The influence of the institutional investments in sports was undeniable in 2024. Across multiple leagues and nearly two dozen teams, these investments provided an infusion of cash into sports that has been building for years and became a tidal wave this year. It propelled The Private Equity Investor to the top of SBJ’s Most Influential People in Sports Business list for 2024.

For the sports sponsorship biz, 2024 was a year of stops and starts, catalyzed by the dual uncertainties of an economy wracked by inflation and the ambiguity and polarization from a divisive presidential election.

The coming year brings with it rosy projections, like GroupM's global forecast of 7.7% growth across advertising.

SBJ Marketing: Fewer starts and stops expected around sponsorships in 2025

A personnel realignment at Anheuser-Busch sees a new head of U.S. sports at the brewer, long one of the top sports marketing spenders.

Uzma Rawn is MLB's new chief marketing officer, succeeding Karin Timpone, who recently left the CMO job after more than three years at MLB.

Executives are busy planning out their hospitality plans for Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans in February.

“Fansville” is a mythical town where nothing's more revered than college football — unless it's Dr Pepper, the brand emblazoned on the town's water tower. The campaign from Deutsch L.A., which debuted in 2018, has helped cement the soda brand as one of the sponsors most closely identified with college football. Fansville has achieved that distinction when the college sports landscape has never been more in flux or more cluttered with sponsor noise, as the CFP has mushroomed in size and scope.

“Fansville” is a mythical town where nothing’s more revered than college football — unless it’s Dr Pepper, the brand emblazoned on the town’s water tower. The campaign from Deutsch L.A., which debuted in 2018, has helped cement the soda brand as one of the sponsors most closely identified with college football.