Game Changers: Unravelling the Influence of Sponsor Signage in Football and Formula 1

Abstract

Sport sponsorships provide a great opportunity for return on investment, yet also present challenging decision-making regarding what type of sport to invest in and the placement of signage. The analysis of this research paper reveals that optimal placement, whether primary or secondary, varies across sports, favouring secondary in football and primary in Formula 1 for maximising viewers’ visual attention during live sporting events. Despite football garnering the first place for visual attention, Formula 1 dominates overall – also when it comes to brand recognition. Thus, highlighting the complexity of determining return on investment. Notably, fan engagement significantly influences visual attention to sponsor signage and viewers’ ability to recognise sponsoring brands, surpassing the impact of visual attention alone. These findings affirm a positive correlation between fan engagement and emotional response, underscoring the multifaceted nature of sports sponsorships. However, amidst conclusive and contradictory results, the complexity of sponsor-sport dynamics persists, warranting further investigation.