/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/larazon/5EBHB4RUTRA6XGE6LJ2SUA577I.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1)
Sports, artistic and cultural sponsorship, among others, is one of the best communication formulas to publicize the social responsibility of a company. Effort, improvement, a healthy lifestyle or the demand for equality are some of the principles associated with brands that support sporting events, and specifically, women’s sports. For years, the king of support for women’s football has been Iberdrola. Their commitment has been recognized by the National Marketing Awards (PNM) that have just celebrated their 13th edition. These awards created by the Spanish Marketing Association have introduced this year as a novelty the category of “Sponsorship”, with Iberdrola as the first winner.
This recognition means taking a step further at the European level, since in 2020 the Association has reached an agreement with the European Sponsorship Association (ESA) by which the winner of this category will participate, as a representative of Spain together with other European countries , in the category of best European sponsorship within the European Sponsorship Awards.
Sponsorship is achieving great relevance in companies, as brands are increasingly being demanded and new ways to connect with consumers and to live and share different experiences are being sought. In this niche, the ESA awards are the pinnacle of European sponsorship recognition and winning one means being an elite company. An example of this are the organizations that won an ESA award in 2021 such as Cadbury, Electric Ireland, Energia, Generali, Häagen-Dazs, Jeep, NatWest, O2, Old El Paso (General Mills), Paris Saint-Germain, Ramboll , SuperValu, Transport for London, Virgin. Money and West Ham United, among others. For the 2022 ESA awards, to be held in London, Iberdrola will be the Spanish representative. The energy company has an extensive letter of introduction that has already earned it the recently created PNM award and that in the coming months could rank it as the best sponsorship in Europe.
Pioneer in women’s sports
In 2016, Iberdrola was the first company to make a global commitment to equality and the empowerment of women through sport. Today the company supports 16 federations: gymnastics, triathlon, rugby, canoeing, badminton, football, handball, volleyball, hockey, table tennis, athletics, karate, boxing, surfing, ice sports and fencing. It also names 22 leagues, all of them top-flight, and 35 other competitions.
At the same time, the contribution of resources, facilities, medical services and referees and the promotion and sponsorship of initiatives by Iberdrola has not only helped to increase the number of federated in the aforementioned disciplines by 39% –to exceed 300,000–, Rather, it is allowing elite Spanish athletes who have developed their sports careers in other countries to return to compete in Spain, helping to increase the level and visibility of national competitions.
All these projects and milestones will serve to select the winner of the ESA awards, where dozens of high-level industry leaders from across Europe and the world will evaluate entries through a blind scoring process. For its part, in the case of the National Marketing Awards, in which Iberdrola has already been crowned in the “Sponsorship” category, the best sponsorship strategies whose purpose is to support sporting activities have been valued and awarded. , cultural, artistic, musical, etc.
In his speech, the Director of Brand, Sponsorship and Advertising at Iberdrola, Juan Luis Aguirrezabal, underlined: “In 2015 we assumed the commitment to work for gender equality and the empowerment of women. That is why we are committed to promoting women’s sport with the conviction that we fight for equal opportunities and healthy lifestyles ».
– .