Should you sponsor the 2018 Commonwealth Games?

With the Commonwealth Games coming to Australian shores in 2018 Danielle Jones looks at what you should consider before deciding whether to sponsor.

The biggest sporting event our nation will see this decade is coming to the Gold Coast in 2018. It is the 21st edition of the Commonwealth Games and many businesses will have received a knock on the door asking if they want to sponsor it. After all, Games organisers are chasing $80 million in sponsorship revenue. The question is, should you sponsor the Games?

Earlier this month, Griffith University announced it had signed on as the University Partner of the Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games. This ‘first of its kind’ deal, which I and others spent one year negotiating, is the Gold Coast’s second announced sponsor.

As the single biggest business on the Gold Coast, Griffith University’s educational products have a global reach. However, when Griffith approached us with the question “Should we sponsor the Games?” our reply was “It depends.”