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Hidden agenda in sport sponsorship – The influence of managers’ personal objectives on sport sponsorship decisions

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  • Jan Schönberner
  • Herbert Woratschek
  • Guido Ellert

Abstract

Despite companies spending billions of dollars on sport sponsorship every year, little is known about how sponsoring companies make sponsorship decisions. Sponsors are expected to enter into sponsorship agreements strategically, so as to achieve corporate objectives. However, managers who make sponsorship decisions could also be motivated by their own personal interests. As soon as managers’ personal objectives manifest themselves to influence their sponsorship decision-making, we speak of a hidden agenda. In our empirical study, we investigated corporate objectives and managers’ personal objectives, and their respective influence on sport sponsorship decisions. We conducted a three-round qualitative Delphi study with 18 participants employed at sponsor organisations, sport clubs, and sport marketing agencies. The results of our study contribute to our understanding of corporate objectives in the sport sponsorship literature. We reveal 12 different personal objectives of managers underlying sponsorship decision-making. In addition, we develop the steps and stages of the sponsorship decision-making process from a sponsor perspective. We reveal the existence of a hidden agenda in sponsorship decisions. Due to divergences in objectives, a hidden agenda leads to agency effects between the shareholders/owners of the sponsoring company (principal) and the managers (agent). The emerging agency effects can have either negative or positive effects for the sponsor. We derive a model showing the decision-making in sport sponsorship, considering managers’ hidden agendas. Managerial implications are discussed.Updates and extends work on corporate sponsorship objectives.Identifies managers’ personal objectives in sport sponsorship decisions.Reveals managers’ hidden agendas in sport sponsorship decisions.Analyses effects of company size as a contextual factor in sponsorship decisions.Explores sponsorship decision-making process from a sponsor perspective.

Suggested Citation

  • Jan Schönberner & Herbert Woratschek & Guido Ellert, 2021. "Hidden agenda in sport sponsorship – The influence of managers’ personal objectives on sport sponsorship decisions," Sport Management Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(2), pages 204-225, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:taf:rsmrxx:v:24:y:2021:i:2:p:204-225
    DOI: 10.1016/j.smr.2020.07.001
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    Cited by:

    1. Tien-Chin Wang & Tsai-Yun Huang & Chien-Hui Lee, 2023. "Exploring the Preference of Corporations for Sponsorship Motives and the Impact of Sponsorship Motives on Sponsoring Intention in Post-Epidemic Era: Using Two Different Approaches—FPR and SEM," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(10), pages 1-22, May.

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