SPONSORSHIP

With the money to join the most exclusive golf clubs or follow their favourite teams, high-net-worth-individuals count sport among their most enjoyed and actively pursued interests.

No surprise then to see the largest private banks’ names and insignia visible at some of the world’s most famous sporting events and venues.

While the winter months see the bulk of the football and rugby seasons, not to mention the Super Bowl and major sporting events Down Under, spring and summer in Europe and North America present a more affluent sporting calendar for high-net-worths.

PBI looks at which banks have capitalised on this, securing long-standing corporate relationships with teams and competitions, ensuring their name is front and centre where their clients go to enjoy the sun, sip champagne and immerse themselves in their favourite sports.

The world’s biggest bank has a long-standing association with the world’s most popular motorsport through its sponsorship of the Mercedes team and the Monaco Grand Prix.

The highlight of the F1 calendar for many, the grand prix taking place each May in Monaco is one of the most glamourous and prestigious sporting events in the world.

Research from WealthInsight last year showed that an astonishing one in three Monaco residents are millionaires, so the relationship would appear a perfect mix for the Swiss private bank, as one of the world’s leading custodians of wealthy people globally.

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Much like motorsport, horse racing is also a popular sport among the wealthy. Investec has capitalised on this by sponsoring Britain’s richest and most prestigious horse race, the Derby.

Taking place at the start of June at Epsom in Surrey, the Derby carries a prize fund of at least $1.9 million.

South African bank Investec became the headline sponsor for the event in 2009, signing a ten-year extension in 2011, which was subsequently renewed taking the deal through until 2026.

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The Eurozone’s largest bank, BNP Paribas, has been the official sponsor of Roland Garros, better known as the French Open, for the last 46 years.

The French Open is Europe’s most prestigious tennis tournament outside of Wimbledon and is viewed by the French banking group as an integral part of its corporate and cultural identity.

Tennis is France’s second most popular sport after football and its flagship tournament takes place in Paris in May and June every year.

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Cricket and an American investment bank might seem like a curious mix, but JP Morgan lends its name to one of the most recognisable structures in the English summer game: the media centre at Lord’s cricket ground.

The slightly unusual looking building, which has been compared to both an abandoned alien spacecraft and Cherie Blair’s mouth, sits at the Nursery End of the Home of Cricket.

JP Morgan’s name has adorned the media centre since 2011, with Jon Robinson, head of commercial for Lord’s owners MCC, deeming the American banking giant “the most significant commercial sponsor that MCC has ever worked with.”

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 A more natural corporate relationship between an American bank and sport would be found in the USA’s own national summer pastime, baseball.

One of the most prominent examples of this is the ballpark of the New York Mets, Citi Field in Queen’s.

Built and opened in time for the start of the 2009 MLB season, the stadium is named for Citigroup, the American bank having secured the naming rights three years earlier, to last until 2026 to the tune of $20m a year.

Image courtesy of Alan Tan Photography / Shutterstock.com