The World Marathon Majors group of elite marathon races has agreed a long-term partnership with the Infront Sports & Media agency that will lead to the formation of the series’ first-ever integrated sponsorship platform.
Under the terms of the contract, Infront will support WMM’s marketing operations while also utilising its expertise in the active lifestyle segment to build the World Marathon Majors brand, alongside a new commercialisation strategy.
From 2015, the integrated WMM sponsorship platform will offer ownership of an intercontinental and year-round digital communication gateway to a high-profile, engaged demographic. Tailored on-site and promotional sponsorship assets will be launched at all six events in Tokyo, Boston, London, Berlin, Chicago and New York.
Infront said it will also support World Marathon Majors in establishing a more cohesive position for the series as the benchmark in running and participatory sports.
Philippe Blatter, president and chief executive of Infront, said: “With the World Marathon Majors we are adding a core sports right to our growing global active lifestyle portfolio and we thank the organisers for their trust in our capabilities and track record. Mass participation events are surging in popularity and growing faster than any other sports segment worldwide. The integrated sponsorship opportunities for WMM deliver an exclusive opportunity for brand association across the most prestigious marathon series worldwide, alongside valuable engagement opportunities and media reach on a global scale.”
WMM events generate 32.8 million page views and up to eight million unique visitors on their respective websites. The races also have over 475,000 fans on their official Facebook pages and to date 212,000 Twitter followers. World Marathon Majors and Infront will seek to further develop the digital footprint of the series.
The new partnership furthers Infront’s association with the WMM. The agency already handles the media and marketing rights, as well as media production, for the Berlin Marathon.
The next WMM event for the 2014 season is the Berlin Marathon on September 28. The series’ new commercial drive will commence as the 2015 season gets underway in Tokyo on February 22.