SPORTO Awards are the awards in the sports business industry for the most successful sponsorship and marketing projects in the field of sport.
For nineteen consecutive years, we celebrate the best in the sports marketing industry throughout the Adriatic region (Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia).
SPORTO Awards will continue to recognize companies and teams that deliver outstanding work and results on behalf of sports brands.
We are especially proud about our longtime partnerships with the European Sponsorship Association and The Slovenian Marketing Association. With our continued partnerships we intend to raise the credibility of SPORTO Awards, broaden ESA’s “Best of Europe” award and help to grow the sponsorship knowledge in Slovenia and Europe generally. Please read rules of entry before applying.
The winners of SPORTO Awards 2024 will be announced at Awards Ceremony on Thursday, 21st of November at the SPORTO Conference.
CATEGORIES
SPORTO SPONSORSHIP AWARD
This category is intended for integrated marketing campaigns, which for its communication platform benefit from sponsorship of an athlete, sports teams, sports event or sports program.
The entrant for this category can be the sponsoring company (brand) or agency on behalf of the company which managed and implemented the activation of sponsorship.
SPORTO RIGHTS HOLDER AWARD
This category is intended for integrated marketing communication campaigns of rights holders. For those who have done exceptional work supporting sponsoring brands, hitting targets, and going out of their way in representing their own identity.
Entrants for this category can be sports clubs, sports federations, individuals athletes and all sports properties that perform marketing activities or sell promotional and media rights in connection with the implementation of its activities.
SPORTO EVENT AWARD
This category recognizes companies, agencies, and rights holders that have created and delivered outstanding sports events of their own and used them as a strategic and effective way of communication of sponsorship or their own brand.
These sports events should demonstrate the effectiveness of achieving their own organization’s or their sponsor’s strategic objectives of growing brand awareness, target audience participation or engagement, product integration, and commercial sales/revenues.
In this category, entries can be as an individual event activity or as part of a broader sponsorship program of which the event only forms a part.
SPORTO DIGITAL AWARD
This category is intended for companies, agencies, and rights holders which have one or more digital platforms (web, social networks, IPTV, digital outdoor screens, etc.) and used them in a strategic and effective way for communication of sponsorship or own sports brand.
In this category, entries can be entered as a separate and completed project or as part of a broader project (which is a complete project in a different category).
SPORTO ACTIVATION AWARD
This category is intended for one-off activations or separate activation under larger sponsorship platform, which would be limited to 20K € budget.
The entrant for this category can be the sponsoring company (brand) or agency on behalf of the company which managed and implemented the activation of sponsorship.
SPORTO SUSTAINABILITY AWARD
This category is intended for companies, agencies, and rights holders that have created and delivered campaigns that inspired audiences by championing a cause and campaigning for environmental, economic or social sustainability.
The entrant for this category can be the company (brand), sports properties or agency on behalf of the company which managed and implemented campaign.
JURY
Entries in all categories will be reviewed and evaluated according to predefined criteria in close cooperation with the European Sponsorship Association (ESA), by an international expert Judging Panel chaired by an ESA representative. Members of the SPORTO Awards 2024 jury are Andraž Štalec (Red Orbit), Primož Kastelic (Hisense), Milan Slana (Herman & partners), Simona Kruhar Gaberšček (Marketing magazin), Tijana Popadić (sportIt), Kiti Iveta (Priredba) and Valentina Erčulj Džuban (Atlantic group and Slovenian marketing association representative).
The highest-ranked project in each country within the category “SPORTO Sponsorship Award” is automatically placed in the contest for the prestigious “Best of Europe Award” at the ESA Excellence Awards competition. Entry into this category is only possible by invitation or by winning the mentioned category at SPORTO Awards competition.
KEY DATES
Tuesday, 15th October 2024 – Entries open
Friday, 8th November 2024 – Entries close
Thursday, 21st 2024 – Winners announced
