Whether Alcohol Could Be Sponsorship of Sports Events - Coursework Example

name of the university SPORT SPONSORSHIP ALCOHOL SPONSORSHIP OF SPORTS EVENTS NAME OF THE STUDENT ADM. NO: COURSE NAME: COURSE CODE: LECTURER NAME: SUBMISSION DATE WHETHER ALCOHOL COULD BE SPONSORSHIP OF SPORT EVENTS Introduction A number of concerns have been raised concerning close connection between alcohol and sports and how it influences the social and cultural norms of society. As a result, there is much current debate concerning the alcohol sponsorship of sporting events and teams. The scholars, governments and stakeholders in cultural and social issues are presently involved in a series of deliberations examining the nature and effects of alcohol advertising and promotion (Greenfield & Room, 2007: 33). iIn many developed nations such as US, UK and Australia, alcohol and sports have been argued to be closely related, where alcohol industry spent more than $680 million on advertising in sports programs on TV. United Kingdom has been termed as “a model case where alcohol and sport are united in a close partnership”, for example, English Premiership League (EPL) is highly sponsored by Guinness. In most countries, alcohol, and the promotion and advertising of alcohol and the sporting events have been linked for many years, to a level where people term it unusual to watch sporting event without seeing some commercial advertisement of alcohol brand like Guinness as it’s the case in EPL games. In Australia, sponsorship of sporting events by the alcohol industry has become the order of the day, and presently many debates have erupted within government, industry groups and public health activists about whether linking alcohol with sport breach the spirit of the advertising set of laws (Black et al, 2009: 201). It has been argued that an association of sports sponsorship and alcohol is indecent since its possible impact on underage consumers and the discrepancy involving alcohol consumption and the physical demands of sports participation. In this paper, we assess whether alcohol could be sponsorship of sport events or not. Sports Sponsorship iiPresently, sports are turning out to be more commercilised, thus sponsorship have got hold of professional sports. Greenfield and Room (2007: 34) argues that sport sponsorship has developed into an essential marketing instrument for promoters because of its flexibility to reach many people and creation of corporate trademark. Yet some sponsors whose products entails alcohol and tobacco have created pandemonium within the society because of embargo imposed on them in the society, even though they make about half of sponsorship in professional sports at the moment. With alcohol firms being under close scrutiny from government and society, their sponsorship of sporting events have be questioned in regard to the effect they pose on Australian youth Sponsorship is important supplement to usual advertisement, however it becomes more valuable where advertisement is barred or restricted (Howard & Crompton, 2005: 267). Sports sponsorship offers several chances of reaching out to audiences in four different ways: during the pre-promotion of sporting event, at the event itself, in the live broadcast of the event and lastly, in the reporting of the event’s results. Every time a sporting event is shown on the TV screen or announced in a radio, the sponsor gains exposure to the viewer or listener respectively, an intervention that many sponsors embrace by sponsoring a sporting event in certain arenas and stadiums presumed to have mammoth crowds. Besides, they place their advertisements posts strategically in the arena, so that those attending the event can easily view them and acknowledge their corporate brand. A number of beer corporations are heavily concerned with sport sponsorship, mostly owning or sponsoring major leagues and teams in Australia, UK and US. Also in most international sport events, alcohol companies have greatly sponsored, for example in 1998 World Cup in France where companies sponsored national teams and most recently the just concluded Olympics in London. A good example can be traced from Kenya, which is a developing country in Eastern Africa whose premier league commonly known as Kenya Premier League (KPL) has now been taken over by a beer company and presently is known as Tusker League. This is an incredible illustration on how beer companies sponsor professional sports in both developing and developed nations around the world. For these companies, sport media is a fundamental means of presenting and promoting their products in association with activities which many people refer to them as healthy. This is an intervention thought to safeguard their product image and thwart any negative perceptions from people. iiiA study conducted in Australia reveals that brands which were popular among the underage are same brands that sponsor major sport leagues in the country. Supportable facts on the harms of alcohol industry sponsorship of sport Several research findings have been brought forward as evidence on mounting pressure to ban alcohol sponsorship of sporting event. At the same time as policy makers in Australia and UK deliberate on whether alcohol advertising and sponsorship should be banned from sport, latest study gives proof that alcohol companies’ sponsorship is linked with more risky drinking habits among sportsperson weighed against non-alcohol sponsorship. A research entitled Alcohol and Alcoholism conducted in University of Western Sydney by health experts asked Australian sportspersons concerning their drinking habits, their participation in sports and the sort of support they presently receive. According to Black et al (2009: 203), Australian non-elite sportsperson are believed to take excessive levels of alcohol, at the same time as members of male sporting teams feel encouraged to take alcohol because of the masculine image of sporting activity and mate ship. The results were shocking as alcohol industry sponsorship was linked with considerably higher levels of drinking compared to non-alcohol sponsorship among sportspeople. About 30% of sportspeople interviewed as receiving alcohol companies’ sponsorship, 68% met WHO standards for classification as hazardous drinkers. The research findings comes at a time when British Medical Association (MBA) and Australian Preventive Health Taskforce (APHT) made recommendations to governments to have alcohol advertising and sponsorship scrapped off from sports. Statistics from business analysts shows that most alcohol firms spend about 80% of their advertising budget on promoting alcohol through sports sponsorship. Consumption of beer among the young Australians is typically linked with sport especially as a key component of post-game celebrations (Howard & Crompton, 2005: 268). However, it is also linked with the general ethos of being part of the team, and men in particular are prone to excessive drinking when socializing with their team mates compared to other groups of friends. Alternative sponsorship of sports ivSponsorship has become a key source of finance in sports. A number of governments are increasingly encouraging organisers of sports and events to look for funding from private sector. The recommendation if followed could result into a serious gap in funding for sports, thus plugging most teams in hands of alcohol companies. According to many, this would have a substantial adverse impact on social and cultural diversity in such countries. Health specialists believe that sports sponsorship is being used as scapegoat to promote alcohol to sportsperson and the universal population. They argue that public does not need more persuasion to take alcohol, and there are ways in which alcohol advertising and sponsorship can be replaced in sports. A good illustration on longstanding bans of alcohol sponsorship can be drawn from Norway and France and most recent from Turkey. During the 1998 FIFA World Cup, France effectively hosted it with their alcohol advertising and sponsorship ban and presently hosts the universal Heineken Cup Rugby match with alcohol prohibition in place. The Federal government of Australia is pursuing an intervention to allot about $25 million to tryout a program to swap alcohol industry sponsorship of community sports and cultural galas. But it could be expanded significantly in future by funds from alcohol excise duty (Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth, 2003). Health professionals believes that any serious sporting union should put the welfare of sportspeople first and support calls for governments to offer optional funding for sports. It is merely not worth gambling with future of young people for the sake of some easy money from alcohol industry. A review of the regulation of alcohol advertising in Australia Several associations have erupted in US and Australia to advocate for the ban of alcohol marketing in sports. They have teamed up with policy makers in making sure that their agenda is achieved. For example, in US there is a latest national campaign called Time To End Alcohol Marketing in Sports (TEAMS) was initiated to minimise the promotion of alcohol usage among the young Americans by barring alcohol marketing in sports. The TEAM is also engaged in promoting positive sports role models among young sportspeople. Their main priorities are to eliminate alcohol sponsorship of college and Olympics sports and disallow alcohol advertising in sporting events (Nelson & Wechsler, 2011: 8). Since May 2004 to March 2005, the Australian Federal government closely monitored the alcohol products advertising campaigns on television and magazine both nationally and regionally. Later on, the government instituted Alcohol Beverages vAdvertising Code which clearly states that alcohol advertising must “not show any direct connection between the consumption of alcohol beverages, other than low-alcohol beverages, and the operation of a motor vehicle, boat or aircraft or the involvement in any sport”. Even though the code does not clarify any certain references to association between the consumption of alcohol beverages and watching, or enjoying, sporting events. Even more concerns relate to present and rising tendency of alcohol advertisements that not only focus on particular sporting events but also encompass players from teams as actors in the advertisements. Yet these sportspeople are broadly recognised as role models for young people, particularly young males. Such instance has potential of increasing the association of alcohol and sports among future population. Conclusion Alcohol companies should abide by the Alcohol Beverages Advertising Code in their commercial speech to tell consumers about their products. If a product is legal to produce and sell then it should be legal to market. The only exceptions to this golden rule should be where an overriding public policy reason such as public safety is. While there is no doubt that misuse of alcoholic beverages can lead to health problems and social concerns, responsible drinking may cause no such problems (McDaniel et al, 2001: 307). Alcohol companies should continue to show a strong and clear commitment to promote sensible drinking habits, thus supporting to minimise alcohol misuse and fostering a balanced understanding of alcohol issues. viBrands like Johnnie Walker and Fosters are using their motor sports sponsorships as platforms for promoting responsible drinking. Banning alcohol sponsorship would impact negatively on economy and perception of the country. For example in Europe, banning alcohol sponsorship would encourage a significant proportion of international events organisers to avoid staging tournaments and other events in Europe, where drinks sponsorship would not be permissible. In the long run, European States could miss out on the significant opportunities that hosting a major international event can offer, including the opportunity to boost tourism, to influence world perception of their country. My personal opinion on this debate is that the money alcohol advertising brings in for each of the sports sponsored is good for those sports, as it’s used to pay players and improve on stadium facilities. The sponsorship should not be banned but advertisements on alcohol need to be limited so that it does not impact negatively on youth development. With society’s bias towards alcohol companies, I would not be against the complete ban of advertising at sporting arenas or in stadiums. 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