Sweeney Research released their annual sports report for 2008/09 yesterday.
Below are the key findings + my thoughts in blue for sponsors.
- Australian cricketer Ricky Ponting is Australia’s most marketable athlete for the third consecutive year.
Despite bad behaviour (on or off the pitch) Australian sports fans are very forgiving, especially if you’re winning. (Shane Warne is ranked in the top 20)
- Australian cricketers hold four of the top ten rankings for most marketable athlete.
Cricket is a bankable sport. It gets enormous exposure every 12 months at a time of year when nothing else is on TV and everyone is off work.
- Seven out of the top ten most marketable athletes are retired.
Don’t be afraid to invest in athletes nearing the end of their careers. It takes years to build a credible brand and that credibility doesn’t disappear overnight.
- There are no Socceroos in the top ten.
Don’t expect this to change anytime soon. Socceroos need free to air coverage desperately. The current anti-siphoning list expires 31 December 2010
- Swimmer Stephanie Rice is the highest ranked female in seventh place.
Swimming remains one of the few sports that can provide the public with a genuine female sports star.
- Cricketer Andrew Symonds has taken the biggest fall, from 10th place last year to 36th place this year.
It’s not difficult to go from hero to zero in a short time. If you stuff up, the Australian public and the media will cut you down, just as quickly as they built you up.
