UK Sponsorship Awards: Three Decades Celebrating Research and Effectiveness

A lot has changed since the Awards began — but nothing has derailed the sector’s upward trajectory. The loss of tobacco sponsorship, the 2008 financial crash, the Covid pandemic and digital disruption have all left their mark. Yet the sponsorship market continues to grow, and major brands still invest across sport, media, the arts, charity and more. Encouragingly, young talent remains drawn to this dynamic, fast-evolving sector as a career path.

Through sheer longevity, UKSA has been privileged to see thousands of case studies — many offering robust evidence that sponsorship delivers tangible return on investment and meaningful shifts in brand profile.

From the 'Chairman’s Whim' to Data-Driven Strategy

In its early days, the industry was often dismissed as the domain of the chairman’s whim — where decisions reflected a leader’s personal passion for golf or opera rather than business logic. That notion now looks increasingly outdated.

Over the years, UKSA has observed that brands apply the same rigour to selecting and measuring sponsorships as they do to any other form of marketing investment. In fact, sponsorship’s challenges pale next to those of digital marketing — where ad fraud, ad fatigue and limited data access often make measurement far harder.

The Awards as a mirror of progress

UKSA’s judging process has remained consistent: rewarding clear objectives, creative activations and demonstrable impact. Entries might reach the shortlist through insight or ingenuity, but few win without credible evidence of effectiveness.

This approach applies across all categories, and is reinforced by a dedicated research category, sponsored by GSIQ, that highlights brands placing measurement at the heart of campaign design. It’s a reminder to brands, agencies and rights holders alike: research isn’t an afterthought — it’s the foundation of meaningful sponsorship.

What three decades have taught us

Some entries still fall short. Like other media, sponsorship can be prone to relying on surface metrics — logo visibility, media impressions or event attendance — which tell only part of the story. Our judges recognise these as outputs, not outcomes. Deep-dive evaluation may be more complex and costly, but it’s essential if you want to know whether a sponsorship truly changed perceptions or drove sales. (That said, there’s still a place for measures like Advertising Value Equivalency, especially for awareness-led campaigns such as product launches.)

Every sponsorship is unique. Fees, objectives, activation budgets, timing, execution and economic context vary so widely that standardised measurement is almost impossible. Brands and agencies also tend to guard their data closely for competitive reasons — though we’re always grateful when they allow us confidential access. Many evaluation companies have made real progress in benchmarking, but sponsorship measurement remains nuanced and complex.

Attribution is another long-standing challenge. Isolating the impact of sponsorship from other marketing activity — especially content or social media — isn’t straightforward. Yet this is a shared problem across all marketing disciplines.

And yes, some deals are tactical rather than strategic. That doesn’t make them frivolous; it reflects instinctive marketing at work. Sometimes, the right creative moment — like Paddy Power’s famous “Lucky Pants” activation with Nicklas Bendtner — speaks to brand character in ways that defy quantification.

The tools of modern evaluation

None of this means the industry lacks robust measurement. Far from it. Many leading sponsors — Coca-Cola, Adidas, Rolex, Carlsberg, VW — have honed sophisticated systems for evaluating effectiveness. Each year, UKSA sees quantitative and qualitative data showing improvements in brand favourability, purchase intent, customer retention, and even long-term relationship value.

A variety of complementary methods are now in play:

• Financial and ROI Analysis: Comparing total investment with measurable returns such as sales or leads — especially effective for short-term activations.
• Incremental Sales Analysis: Tracking sales during sponsorship periods against control baselines to gauge influence.
• Lead and Conversion Tracking: Using promo codes, QR links and trackable URLs to tie consumer action directly to sponsorship exposure.
• Brand & Awareness Studies: Measuring shifts in perception, aided by modern tools like social listening and sentiment analysis.
• Engagement Metrics: Assessing participation, content interaction and event involvement to understand emotional connection.
• Qualitative Insights: Interviews, case studies and focus groups that reveal satisfaction between sponsors, rights holders and even internal teams.
• Econometrics: Advanced modelling used by major brands to isolate sponsorship’s impact within the wider marketing mix — increasingly augmented by AI and real-time analytics.

Few campaigns rely on a single method. The most sophisticated brands combine multiple data sources to build a holistic picture of performance.

As Charlie Dundas, co-founder of our sponsor GSIQ says: "There isn’t a ‘right’ or a ‘wrong’ way to track effectiveness — no two brands have the same goals. The method should be determined by what the sponsor is looking to achieve.The trend within the sector is towards more flexible, dynamic models to deliver the insights that matter.”

A mature industry that knows its worth

Ironically, sponsorship’s strengths — creativity, partnership and emotional resonance — also make it hard to measure with a single yardstick. But that doesn’t mean the industry lacks rigour. After three decades of judging, UKSA has repeatedly seen that brands and agencies can measure effectiveness — and do.

Measurement may never be flawless, but the sector’s analytical maturity is clear. And as the 2026 Awards approach, we look forward to another wave of compelling case studies proving, yet again, that great sponsorships don’t just create eye-catching moments — they deliver measurable impact.