2023 Hollard Sport Industry Awards – Final Call For Entries
2023 can only be described as a bumper year for South African sport. While the Rugby and Cricket World Cups are currently front and centre, this year also saw the Netball World up take place in Cape Town in July, not to mention the FIFA Women’s World Cup dominate headlines in August.
These sporting tournaments, and the many others that take place annually, provide South Africans with opportunities to come together and support their national teams, instilling a sense of national pride and unity, as people from diverse backgrounds rally behind the same flag. These events also offer a multitude of sponsorship and marketing opportunities for brands that provide the financial support and resources necessary for these events to take place.
In the lead up to the 2023 Hollard Sport Industry Awards, last year’s winner of the Young Agency of the Year award, Warren Swartz, says that sport in South Africa plays a significant role in unifying the nation. “With all the negativity happening in the country , the one the thing that brings positivity is sport. Just look back at the 2010 FIFA World Cup when the whole country was behind Bafana Bafana,” he says.
Swartz says that there have been many stand out marketing opportunities over the last year.
“One that really stood out for me was the whole saga with the Springboks away jersey and Checkers not wasting any time jumping on a marketing campaign. I think that was brilliant,” he says.
The Hollard Sport Industry Awards take place annually to acknowledge the leaders and trailblazers within the business of sport and recognises groundbreaking campaigns, impactful partnerships and sporting platforms that drive social change.
The deadline to submit entries for this year’s Hollard Sport Industry Awards is 31 October. A judging panel of leading sports marketers, journalists, communications specialists, sponsors and strategists will then evaluate all entries before the winners are announced at a gala event on 23 November.
“Sponsorships and brand support are an integral part of the sport industry, enabling sporting tournaments to take place, flourish, and reach a broader audience. It is because of the teams behind the teams that South Africans are able to discover their common passions, rally together and unite in support of their sporting heroes, ultimately creating a better future for the country,” says Warwick Bloom, Group Marketing Head at Hollard.
