What is the projected trend for popularity of live events?

Live events, especially sporting events will be more and more in demand simply because of its international reach.

For e.g. The Barclays Premiership reaches more than 100 countries live each weekend with total audiences in the hundreds of millions. The advertisings for these events have come a long way from painting the grounds, to paper boards and now to changing thin electronic boards. Furthermore, the English Premier League reaches audience in 208 countries and generates TV revenues of USD 2.5 Billion per year.

To further reiterate the importance of sporting events, the FIFA World Cup 2006 Stats are given below: • 376 licensed TV Channels across 214 countries • A total of 43600 broadcast totalling 73,072 hours with cumulative audience of 26.29 billion • USD 6.03 billion to FIFA from Sponsorship & Marketing

Sports will be a major avenue for advertising especially in emerging markets. There is huge untapped potential along the lines of sponsorship of teams and advertising via club accessories. With a burgeoning global middle class and with sports leveling globally, advertising in sports should be a thing to watch out for.