Sports enthusiasts are dedicated fans who experience a high level of emotion as they follow their teams’ fates throughout the season. In general, an emotional audience is an engaged audience, and viewers who are attentive during games are likely to stay focused on advertising during games. Although the most enthused sports fans are typically male, sports have penetrated American culture so thoroughly that there is a wide and growing audience of sports fans of all ages, household income levels and both genders. This report examines both the marketing of sports events, as well as marketing for consumer goods and services framed within the context of the televised sports event. Topics covered include, but are not limited to, the following:

Sports enthusiasts are dedicated fans who experience a high level of emotion as they follow their teams’ fates throughout the season. In general, an emotional audience is an engaged audience, and viewers who are attentive during games are likely to stay focused on advertising during games. Although the most enthused sports fans are typically male, sports have penetrated American culture so thoroughly that there is a wide and growing audience of sports fans of all ages, household income levels and both genders. This report examines both the marketing of sports events, as well as marketing for consumer goods and services framed within the context of the televised sports event. Topics covered include, but are not limited to, the following:

Who are sports enthusiasts? What is the demographic makeup of sports fans, and how have marketers succeeded at best reaching them? What effect has the recession had on sports fans and how they prefer to view games?

How are new ways to watch sports changing the way fans interact with marketers? How have new trends in streaming video and mobile devices changed the sports watching experience?

How has better technology changed the at-home viewing experience, and what are marketers doing in response? Likewise, what changes are seen in live events at the stadium?

What are new innovators bringing to the field of sports marketing? What are the industry-wide trends in sports sponsorships among brands, leagues, and athletes?