Sponsorship and Advertising Opportunities
 

Bethesda Soccer Club Thanksgiving Tournament 2009

The Marketing Audience

The Tournament offers an excellent opportunity to capitalize on the growing soccer interest created by the World Cup and Olympic soccer matches, qualifiers and friendlies played in Maryland and DC over the years, and local professional soccer led locally by four-time Major League Soccer champion DC United and 2003 WUSA champion Washington Freedom. More recently, the arrival of David Beckham from England to the USA was the latest front page soccer story. The demographics in Montgomery County makes the tournament an ideal vehicle for product and service marketing at the start of the Christmas shopping season and for image enhancement with the local community. The Tournament is especially well suited for national and regional businesses in Montgomery County. Sponsorship not only demonstrates local support and involvement to participants from this area but also provides impressions for visitors from outside the sponsor’s marketing locations.

The direct audience includes about 9,000 boys and girls ranging in age from 9 to 18; about 1,000 officials, including coaches, managers, referees and tournament volunteers; and at least 18,000 parents, plus siblings and other relatives, friends and fans who attend as spectators.

The indirect audience includes readers of tournament publicity in area and community newspapers; soccer coaches and administrators who see the Tournament’s calendar listing and other promotional material in soccer publications; and parents and others who do not accompany their family’s player, but who see the Tournament program and other materials both before and after the event.

Sponsorship Categories

Principal Name Sponsor

CONTRIBUTION: $5,000 and up

BENEFITS:

• Organization’s name on Tournament.

• Corporate name will be used in signage, at registration and in printed promotional material.

• Sponsor may set up its own booth at fields or the Tournament headquarters for distribution of promotional materials. Size and location subject to Tournament approval; sponsor to provide booth personnel.

• Full-page advertisement in Tournament program; black-and-white camera-ready copy to be provided by sponsor.

• Sponsor may provide promotional materials for inclusion in registration materials distributed to competing teams and players.

General Sponsor

General sponsors will be visibly identified but not as part of the Tournament name.

CONTRIBUTION: $1,500 or more, some or all of which can be offset by suitable contributions-in-kind.

BENEFITS:

• Sponsor, if it wishes, can select an element of the Tournament to sponsor, such as registration, scoreboards, college coaches presentation, trainers, map & directions, or the Saturday night dance/reception. Corporate name will be displayed prominently on or with the element as is appropriate.

• Corporate name will be used in signage, at registration and in printed promotional materials.

• Sponsor may set up its own booth at fields or the Tournament headquarters for distribution of promotional materials. Size and location subject to Tournament approval; sponsor to provide booth personnel.

• Full-page advertisement in Tournament program; black-and-white camera-ready copy to be provided by sponsor.

• Sponsor may provide promotional materials for inclusion in registration materials distributed to competing teams and players.

Age Group Sponsors

CONTRIBUTION: $800, some or all of which can be offset by suitable contributions-in-kind.

BENEFITS:

• Sponsor’s name will be used to identify one age group, such as U-17 girls or boys, in the program, on the trophies, and on other materials concerning the age group.

• Random drawing among participants in the relevant age group for any product or service prize the sponsor may care to donate.

• Full-page advertisement in Tournament program; black-and-white camera-ready copy to be provided by Sponsor; ad will be placed adjacent to the schedule for a Sponsor age group.

• Sponsor may provide promotional materials for inclusion in registration materials distributed to competing teams and players.

Exclusivity

Principal name and General Sponsors will be exclusive for their specific product or service category (e.g., grocery, athletic shoe/apparel makers, soccer store, hardware/home center, bank, etc.). This does not apply to Age Group Sponsorships or program advertising.

For more information on becoming a Sponsor for the Bethesda Thanksgiving Tournament, contact Laura Gurney at lrgurney@verizon.net.

• Sponsorship Information
• General Sponsorship Agreement
• Age Group Sponsorship Agreement
• College Sponsor Agreement