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As the director of marketing partnership for the NBA, Jennifer Hemmer worked with country managers around the world from her office in New York. "One minute I was talking to Moscow and two minutes later, Istanbul," says Hemmer. "It was very international.
International sports marketing may sound glamorous, and it can be. But there is also a lot of hard, behind-the-scenes work that gets Visa, Nike or Coca-Cola out on the playing field at a major sporting event. The jobs not only involve event management, but also athlete representation, TV rights, sales and distribution, and licensing and promotion.
What's a Typical Day Like?
Someone in this field might spend the day coordinating the details of contracts or negotiating with an athlete for an appearance or commercial. There is also time spent meeting with your peers in advertising or PR and promotion to strategize about how to best leverage sponsorships or assist with event planning and coordination. The job is demanding, multifaceted, and requires creativity and attention to detail.
Where Are the Jobs?
Professionals in international sports marketing can work through a variety of venues. You might work for a league, like the NBA or a soccer federation, or maybe a team, like the LA Lakers.
Corporations like Pepsi, Budweiser and UPS hire individuals to manage their promotional campaigns and sponsorship of domestic and international sporting events. Hemmer, for example, now works for Visa as its director of event and sponsorship marketing, where she manages relationships with the sports and entertainment properties Visa has deals with. She also directs the company's integrated marketing platform to leverage each of its sponsorships.
There are also jobs available with agencies hired by corporations to do this type of work. ISL, now headquartered in Switzerland, or Octagon, which operates globally in more than 20 countries, are two well-known examples.
Nella McMonigal, Octagon's HR coordinator, notes that the organization tends to hire sports agents, administrative assistants and candidates with sports marketing, financial services and accounting experience. Octagon's Web site has more information on job opportunities.
What Skills Are Required?
Hemmer's biggest piece of advice, which she admits she didn't follow, is to come in with brand marketing or advertising experience. The field has a lot of MBAs and individuals with traditional brand marketing backgrounds.
"Basically, sports is another brand; it is just sexier than soap," says Hemmer. The ability to put together an integrated marketing plan is critical, as the work often involves planning around a huge event like the World Cup or Nascar, large sporting events that have many components and often last several days or weeks.
Managing and negotiating contracts are also a big part of the job, and while a legal background could be helpful, most of this is learned through experience. Hemmer has a master's in international affairs with a focus on international business. This, combined with six years of relevant client experience, helped her land the job at the NBA. They valued both her industry background as well as her ability to understand and effectively relate in a multicultural environment.
Find out More
Street and Smith's Sports Business Journal is the major publication read by professionals in the field. It covers a wide range of areas within sports marketing, including business, finance, venues, online information, marketing and sponsorship and speaks to international as well.
The Sports Biz Research Network (SBRnet) is a fee-based service, focusing on the sporting goods and sports marketing industries. With your subscription, you can search through updated information on any sports business subject.
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