The sponsorship cheque is not there for Czech football

Czech Sparta Praha has been dominant in the Gambrinus League, taking nine of the past 12 titles. But, as for marketing, it's strictly second division.

Sparta's jerseys do not bear any advertising or commercial logos, as Eurotel pulled up stakes and decided not to renew a six-year sponsorship deal, which expired in June.

"We've reassessed the objectives of our sponsorship activities," said company spokesman Martin Zabka.

Sparta is not alone in the Czech Republic.

Crosstown rival Slavia has replaced its main sponsors each of the past two years, as gas station chain Benzina and national air carrier Czech Airlines both dropped football from their marketing campaigns.

During the offseason, construction company Stavo Artikel withdrew support for FC Brno.

The lack of sponsors has left clubs with gaping financial holes to fill, and is creating concern about the fading popularity of the sport.

Sparta is the richest club in Czech football, and has traditionally relied on its main sponsor to provide more than 10 percent of its USD 13.7 million annual operating budget.

Smaller clubs may rely upon primary sponsors for as much as 25 percent of total revenue. And tracking down companies for backing is getting tougher.

Daniel K�ppl, editor-in-chief of the Prague-based Marketing & Media magazine, said the reason for increasing reluctance to back clubs is directly related to a drop in the quality of the competition on the field.

"Attendance is going down, so their sponsorship does not have adequate impact on people," K�ppl said. "Big companies are now more hesitant than ever about whether or not to invest in Czech soccer. They are re-evaluating what kind of returns they can expect on such investments."

The problem has extended from the club level to the Czech national team, which is losing its appeal to sponsors. A disappointing performance in this year's World Cup and the expected retirement of a handful of key players caused official business partner ING Bank to let its four-year contract with the Czech Soccer Association (CMFS) expire in mid-August.

In a written statement, ING said it plans to focus on a different marketing strategy. Jan Kinda, director of STES, which markets the Czech national team, said the club was unable to fulfill ING's future expectations.

CMFS officials said they have already been in talks with an unspecified financial firm about sponsorship and should make an announcement soon, but Sparta has been talking that game as well, but with little results to show so far.

After months of negotiations, Sparta's deal with an undisclosed Austrian multinational company has not yet materialized. The company's headquarters recently rejected the deal, said Luk�s Pribyl, Sparta's communication director, as the club is seeking a long-term commitment.

"We're still searching for a new main sponsor," Pribyl said. "If we wanted mere cash in return for putting the sponsor's logo on our jerseys, we could agree on a deal with someone virtually overnight. But finding a long-term sponsor is more complicated."

The national team's success over the past decade triggered euphoria, which had translated into solid backing � until now.

"(Football) became a good marketing tool for appealing to big crowds," said former Pilsner Urquell spokesman Alexej Bechtin.

Sponsorship seemed firm until earlier this year. Backers stood by their clubs throughout a major league corruption scandal that surfaced in the spring.

Mobile telecommunication operator T-Mobile, a business partner of the CMFS, called for changes to the association's management. Although they still haven't happened, T-Mobile prolonged its partnership in summer 2005.

Coming into the season, Sparta seemingly had little reason to worry. Eurotel had been the club's main sponsor for six years and last year contributed about USD 1.3 million.

But the World Cup has marked the start of the downfall, and sponsors are increasingly hesitant to commit.

The launch of digital TV broadcasting in the Czech Republic in the next few months could help buoy the interest of current sponsors, and help clubs lure new ones, analysts say, because advertising exposure would increase with improved picture quality.

"It always pays off when we can be visible on the screen," said Jaroslav Cerny�, spokesman for Skoda Auto, which sponsors Gambrinus liga runner-up Mlad� Boleslav. And Sparta's Pribyl said that there is not yet reason to panic. "Sparta and Czech football in general still hold significant business appeal," he insisted.

Source: euFootball.BIZ © Copyright 2006 - All rights reserved.