As the best proposals of the 2018 sport sponsorship MOOC, both will receive a full scholarship to study at the Johan Cruyff Institute
Alba Sanclimens, of Spanish nationality, and the Canadian Mathieu Boutin, submitted the two best projects in Spanish and English, respectively, of all the proposals presented in this online course organized by the Johan Cruyff Institute, in collaboration with the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona through its Coursera platform.
The jury considered that, of the 45 proposals submitted in the course in English and the 94 received in the Spanish version, these two were the ones that best respond to the challenge set in the course: the activation of a sponsorship for a Cruyff Court of the Johan Cruyff Foundation. As winners, both students will be awarded a scholarship to study the Online Postgraduate Program in Sport Sponsorship at the Johan Cruyff Institute.
Alba Sanclimens
The Catalan chocolate drink brand Cacaolat was the sponsor chosen by Alba Sanclimens for her project.
“A sport sponsorship is a direct relationship between a company and an event, an institution or a personality. In the project that I presented, the sponsee was the Cruyff Foundation and the chosen sponsor was Cacaolat. I chose Cacaolat for a question of values. The target audience of the brand is children which is the same for the Cruyff Foundation. In addition, the brand of the well-known chocolate drink is promoting a healthy lifestyle along with its collaboration with the SHE Foundation, a characteristic that sets it apart from its competitors. After studying the competition, Cacaolat was the best positioned brand in terms of shared values with the Cruyff Foundation. Also, it allowed for a sponsorship to be initiated along with a good activation so that the sponsorship relationship was beneficial for both,” explains Sanclimens. “Winning a scholarship to study at the Johan Cruyff Institute makes me very happy. The institution has great professionals and, in fact, it is one of the few places that offer specific programs in sport sponsorship. I am very happy to know that the jury has rated my work as the best. In fact, I couldn’t believe it when they contacted me. Therefore, I want to thank the Johan Cruyff Institute for showing me that every effort has its reward.”
The jury chose this sponsorship plan because: “The concept is perfectly aligned with the values of the Cruyff Foundation. Both entities want to promote a healthy, social and active lifestyle. In addition, the combination of creative activations, both external and internal, together with the importance of the social aspect and the promotion of the right values for young people, make this alliance a growth platform for both parties.”
Mathieu Boutin
Mathieu Boutin chose the recently created Canadian Premier League (CanPL) as the sponsor of his project.
“I chose the Canadian Premier League as sponsor of this project because, as it starts its first season in 2019, it needs exposure and needs to establish itself in the community,” explains Boutin. “Although sports leagues are usually sponsees, selecting the league as a sponsor for this project was also an opportunity for the CanPL to establish itself through corporate social responsibility. Canada has had professional football leagues in the past, but it is currently one of the few countries without a national league. Despite Canada being a well-known ice hockey nation, football is the number one sport in terms of youth participation. As such, an initiative that links the Cruyff Courts with the CanPL provides this opportunity to reach the communities and youth of Canada. As the Cruyff Courts are not present in Canada, these shared values offered a very good opportunity, ensuring the necessary win-win relationship between the sponsee and the sponsor. The CanPL also has a strong commercial arm behind it, Canadian Soccer Business, which provides a strong business backing to the sponsorship.”
According to the jury: “Choosing a sponsor like the Canadian Premier League fits perfectly with the essence and spirit of the Cruyff Courts because both encourage children to PLAY. The innovative way of thinking together with the idea of promoting football as a sport in a country where ice hockey dominates through the Cruyff Foundation and the Cruyff Courts is already interesting, but if we add the set of internal and external activations that it proposes, involving social media, it gives it a very interesting touch.”
Boudin concludes: “As for me, winning this scholarship is a step forward towards a developing passion for sport management and sport marketing. Professionally, I come from another sector and the opportunity to follow the postgraduate program will help broaden my horizons in what is a true passion of mine. Studying an initial program at the Johan Cruyff Institute through a scholarship is definitely an opportunity that will allow me to follow through with my dreams.”
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