Sponsorship and Sports PR

IntroductionPembroke Communications is a recognised industry leader and specialist in Sponsorship and Sports PR.

We work with a wide client base negotiating, evaluating and advising on sponsorship opportunities and, crucially, leveraging and communicating sponsorships to ensure our clients get the most value from their spend.

The Pembroke sports team consists of people with a deep understanding of the Irish sporting landscape and boasts an unrivalled relationship with the sports media. Our experience extends across all sports, including the GAA, rugby and soccer as well as horse racing, golf, cycling, snooker and athletics.

We place forward planning, imagination, flexibility and hard work at the heart of our proactive service to clients which include sports associations, a leading bookmaker, sports clothing manufacturers, sports retail outlets and major sports sponsorship accounts.

Pembroke Communications is the only Irish PR firm that is a full member of the ESA (European Sponsorship Association).

The Bigger PictureAs a key company within the Publicis QMP group, Pembroke has instant access to the following in-house services:

– Consumer research – AskChili– Strategic planning unit– Creative and design services– Production and print services– Sales promotion, merchandising and street marketing– Online marketing and digital expertise– Affiliate pr companies in Cork and West of Ireland

We are also allied with Ethnic Media Ltd, Ireland’s only media company which specifically targets several ethnic groups.

All of this means Pembroke has an open door to services that are central to leveraging sponsorships.

Pembroke Sports ClientsPast & Present

Sports OrganisationsPembroke staff have worked with a number of high level sports organisations in Ireland, including the GAA, the largest sports association in the country, the Dublin GAA County Board, the Ladies Gaelic Football Association, the ILGU, Swim Ireland and the Paralympic Council of Ireland. We also have regular dealings with the IRFUand FAI.

GAA:Pembroke have worked closely with the GAA on a number of key PR projects including the Allianz National Hurling and Football Leagues, the U-21 Hurling Championship, the Inter-Pro’s and the Cúl Camps.

Ladies Football:Ladies Football is the country's fastest growing and largest female team participation sport. Pembroke manages the Association's entire publicity portfolio including the National Football League, the Championship, the Club Championship as well as managing all aspects of the Association’s sponsorship requirements.

Sponsorship ManagementPembroke’s expertise in sponsorship covers the full spectrum of the sponsorship field. We manage the sponsorship portfolios of a number of leading brands including Bord Gáis Energy, Halifax, FBD Insurance, the Irish Examiner, O’Neills and Vhi Healthcare. We can also advise on, source, negotiate and evaluate sponsorships on behalf of clients.

Halifax:Pembroke are sponsorship advisors to Halifax and manage all aspects of the bank’s sponsorship of the GPA, including the GaelicPerformance Camps, the Fair Play Award and Hurling Twinning Programme as well as their horse racing and community based and arts sponsorships.

Bord Gáis Energy:Pembroke brokered the Bord Gáis Energy sponsorship of the Ladies National Football League and we manage the publicity and leveraging of this and all their other properties within Bord Gáis Energy’s sponsorship portfolio including the Cork City Marathon, the GAA Hurling U-21 All-Ireland Championship and the IRUPA Rugby Awards.

Sponsorship Management

FBD Insurance:We handle all aspects of FBD’s sponsorship of the famous RÁS, Ireland’s premier cycling event, and the All-Ireland GAA Golf Championship

Vhi Healthcare:Pembroke handled all aspects of the promotion of VHI’s sponsorship of the Ladies Club Football sponsorship, Club Person of the Year Award and Vhitalitysports seminars

O’Neills:The All-Ireland 7’s Tournament

Irish Examiner:Young Sports Star Awards

Event ManagementThe Pembroke team is adept at event management, from small scale promotional events such as store signings, to large scale national fixtures like festivals, including the Puck Fair, and sports events.

We ensure that every aspect is carefully planned and that your brand is positioned as a main focal point. Such events are designed to maximise positive exposure for you brand.

Bord Gáis Energy:Pembroke played a leading role in the 2009 Bord Gáis Energy Cork City Marathon from start to finish, managing all publicity and organisational elements in the lead up to the event and on the day itself, including event running order, press office and set up.

Over 10,000 people participated in the race and in the first year of sponsorship, it was crucial for a well branded, successful and enjoyable event to occur for Bord Gáis Energy. We succeeded in cementing the sponsorship link and ran a smooth event which created a huge buzz around Cork.

Sports PromotionsPembroke can support you in every aspect of a promotional campaign, from offering creative ideas to managing events and raising public awareness.

P&G:

Pembroke successfully fused Ariel and the GAA through a promotional campaign over a three year period. The partnership brokered by Pembroke resulted in invaluable equity for the brand and a significant increase in market share. The campaign transcended the regular sports arena and engaged the general consumer.

Setanta:

Pembroke co-ordinated all the promotional work for Setanta Sports to highlight their successful FA Cup coverage. This included a tour of Ireland with the FA Cup.

Sports RetailPembroke works with a number of sports retail clients including international sports performance apparel providers Under Armour and Ireland’s largest independent bookmaker Boylesports. We have also worked on key campaigns in the recent past with Canterbury, Premier Golf and Elvery’s.

Boylesports:

Pembroke manage the daily PR for Boylesports. This includes publicising the company’s sports book, its online and high street offerings and its extensive sponsorship portfolio.

Boylesports is the official bookmaker to the FAI and sponsors of Premier League side Sunderland AFC. They also sponsor a host of top class national hunt and flat horse racing events. Pembroke support and leverage all Boylesports sponsorships including the International Poker Open

Sports Business/Management

Pembroke looks after the contract negotiation and commercial profile of several leading Irish sports stars in rugby, GAA and athletics.

We also assist past players and sports celebrities to leverage their status for after dinner speaking and corporate hospitality.

We ensure that our clients get value for money and that these sports stars and celebrities are properly looked after.

Who We AreMichael O’Keeffe, Managing DirectorMichael joined Pembroke in 2005 and has a proven track record in developing creative PR and sponsorship strategies for a diverse range of clients.

Current clients include Boylesports, Bord Gáis Energy, the Vintners’ Federation of Ireland (VFI), Under Armour, Connacht Gold, Hotels.com, Temple Street Hospital, Fighting Blindness and The Ladies Gaelic Football Association.

Michael also looks after the sponsorship interests of VhiHealthcare, FBD Insurance, Halifax, O’Neills Sports and Proctor and Gamble and has worked extensively with the GAA in the last number of years on the U-21 Hurling championship, the Allianz Leagues, the Championship and M Donnelly inter-provincial championships.

Michael is a regular contributor to magazines and newspapers, and has excellent contacts in the areas of news, current affairs, business and sport. Michael represented Dublin in Gaelic Football at all levels and Ireland in soccer at underage level.

Who We AreDavid O’Síocháin, Account DirectorDavid joined Pembroke from RTE Radio Sport. He has worked as a news and sports journalist in the Waikato Times in New Zealand and at the Sunday World in Dublin.

David works on several key sports accounts including Boylesports, Ladies Gaelic Football and Under Armour. He managed P&G’s Ariel GAA promotion for three years and worked on the Irish launch of retail chain Premier Golf.

David also works on corporate accounts including Nationwide UK Ireland, the 162 Group – 7 AIM Listed companies and recently brokered an official partnership for Cooley Distillery with Connacht Rugby.

David has played top grade club rugby in New Zealand and Ireland and currently coaches the Clontarf 1st XV in Division 1a of the All Ireland League. He is also a member of two championship golf courses – Royal Dublin and Lahinch. David has a honours degree in journalism from DCU and a post graduate diploma in Marketing, Advertising and PR from DBS.

Who We AreClaire Turvey, Senior Account ManagerClaire worked in the sports media industry in London for six years with a number of media outlets including the BBC, Sky News, Sky Sports and latterly as a soccer and feature writer with The Times.

At Pembroke, Claire specialises in sports, sponsorship and corporate PR and currently manages a number of major sponsorships on behalf of clients like Bord Gáis Energy, Setanta, FBD Insurance, Halifax and O’Neills. Her other clients include Connacht Gold, Ladies Gaelic Football Association and City and Guilds.

Claire manages the extensive sponsorship portfolio of Bord Gáis Energy which includes the Ladies Football National Leagues, the U-21 Hurling Championships and the Cork City Marathon.

Claire has First Class Honours Degree from Trinity, where she was sports editor of the University Record and elected PRO for the Ladies Football team for three years running.

Who We AreKelli Slattery, Account Manager

Kelli Slattery graduated from UCD with an honours degree in Sports Management and went on to complete a Masters in Marketing in DIT Aungier Street.

Kelli works across the Sports and Consumer divisions in PembrokeCommunications and her client list includes Boylesports, Ladies Gaelic Football Association, Under Armour, Halifax (sports sponsorship), Bord Gáis Energy (sports sponsorship), Bord Bia and Griffith College. She has also worked on clients such as the GAA, Elvery’s Sports Stores, the Irish Rugby Football Union, Leinster Rugby, Nokia, and Guinness.

She has a keen interest in all sports. In 2009, she set up a Basket ball club The Green to compete in the Dublin Ladies Basketball league and is active member of Lahinch Golf Club.

Our Account Management Standards

• We are a member of the Public Relations Consultants Association (PRCA), and manage our business in accordance with the Consultancy Management Standard Code of Practice

• Pembroke is the only Irish pr agency with membership of the European Sponsorship Association

• Executive time sheets are recorded for all assignments

• Our invoicing is transparent with all fees and third party costs agreed before work commences

• Winner of 2007 PRCA Award for Excellence

• Winner of 2008 AIM Award for Integrated Marketing

Contact

Contact our Sports and Sponsorship Team:

Mick O’Keeffe, michael@pembrokecomms.ie

David O’Siochain, david@pembrokecomms.ie

Claire Turvey, claire@pembrokecomms.ie

Kelli Slattery, kelli@pembrokecomms.ie

Tel: 01-6496486 www.pembrokecomms.ie