Professional Football Sponsorship in the English Premier League and the German Bundesliga

This research project looks at professional football sponsorship from three different perspectives: the clubs’ perspective (sponsorship as an income stream for professional football clubs), the sponsors’ perspective (sponsorship as a marketing tool for companies), and a joint perspective (sponsorship as an inter-organisational relationship between professional football clubs and their sponsors). The English Premier League and the German Bundesliga serve as the subject of research owing to their extraordinarily sound reputation in commercial terms.

The findings of the research partially confirmed previous studies. More importantly, new insights have been uncovered. For example, new dimensions of relationship quality in the context of professional football sponsorship have been identified. This study therefore has both theoretical and practical implications for professional football clubs, sponsoring companies and prospective researchers in the field of (professional) football sponsorship. The study also contributes significantly to existing knowledge about the football business, sponsorship and relationship marketing.