Sponsorship Activation Awards launched.
The first-ever SportX Sponsorship Activation Awards for South Africa have been launched, giving brands the opportunity to showcase how they use their sponsorship rights to connect with fans and create public-facing activations within the sports ecosystem.
Graeme Smith, Convenor of the Betway SA20, on a recent talk show, said that when the league negotiates sponsorship contracts, it always insist that the sponsor include a fan activation like a car giveaway or the Catch R2 Million activations to give the fans the best experience when attending matches.
The SportX Sponsorship Activation Awards has been designed to create a platform for brands to showcase their activations and recognise the campaigns that deliver the most engaging, innovative and impactful experiences for fans.
Brands can enter by submitting a link to their primary sponsorship activation video or, if no video is available, a one-page visual outline showing how the activation was developed and integrated into the sponsorship.
All qualifying entries will be judged on one simple principle, i.e.; how creatively and effectively the brand used its sponsorship rights to create a public-facing activation. The video or visual outline will demonstrate how the brand used its rights across relevant touchpoints.
All shortlisted nominees will be ranked and receive one of five status levels, i.e.; Platinum, Gold, Silver, Bronze or Highly Commended, respectively.
Additional Best Sponsorship Activation awards will be presented across 10 categories: National Teams / National Federations; Professional Leagues; Professional Clubs / Franchises; Professional Cup / Knock-Out Competitions; Marathons; Mass Participation Events; National Sports Events / Tournaments / Championships; Individual Athletes / Sports Personalities / Ambassadors; Sports Development / Grassroots Programmes; and All Sports Codes / Sporting Events (professional and non-professional).
The awards will feature a South African segment, together with a select number of categories for the Rest of Africa, giving brands across the continent also an opportunity to showcase how effectively they have integrated their sponsorship rights into the sports ecosystem and activated them in the public domain.
According to Gerrit Davids, Founder of SportX, “After much deliberation on how best to award sponsors, we decided not to look at traditional campaign metrics, but rather at how creatively brands activated their sponsorship. Hence, we are only looking at the promotional video or an outline of the activation to judge entries.”
“We believe that creativity should be recognised, rather than campaign metrics, which in most cases are difficult to quantify in terms of ROI,” said Davids.
The Rankings and Awards will be revealed in early 2027, and the closing date for entries is 30 November 2026.
To nominate an activation: Click Here
For enquiries, contact Gerrit Davids
MD, Gerom Media
Email: info@sportsbusiness.co.za
Mobile: +27 82 496 1657