IMG’s three sports sponsorship trends to watch in 2026

cityam2025-12-31

The UFC's partnership with IBM is a case study in using AI to scale and streamline insight generation Look out for higher demands on AI, more prediction markets and greater sophistication in women’s ...

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Based on what we are seeing across the market, three trends are poised to define sponsorship strategy and deal-making in 2026.Stay ahead with our three daily briefings delivering all the key market moves, top business and political stories, and incisive analysis straight to your inbox.This creates a powerful sponsorship opportunity when executed with intention, and the partnership between the UFC and IBM is a strong case study. By leveraging AI to streamline and scale insight generation across more than 40 live events, IBM enabled faster, smarter content creation and delivered an estimated three-fold increase in insight volume.In 2026, brands will increasingly expect this level of sophistication, and properties that can clearly articulate AI-driven value will separate themselves in a crowded marketplace.2. Prediction markets further gamify fandomAnother category gaining momentum is prediction markets, which are r","collect":0,"end_time":0,"defaultTopTitle":"cityam.com","property":[],"viewcount":null,"language":"en","relate_stocks":{"LU1880398554.USD":"AMUNDI FUNDS GLOBAL EQUITY \"A2\" (USD) INC","BK4534":"瑞士信贷持仓","LU1778281490.HKD":"HSBC GIF GLOBAL LOWER CARBON EQUITY \"AD\" (HKD) INC","LU0321505439.SGD":"Schroder ISF Global Dividend Maximiser A Acc SGD","BK4533":"AQR资本管理(全球第二大对冲基金)","BK4602":"量子计算概念","BK4587":"ChatGPT概念","BK4575":"芯片概念","LU1894683264.USD":"AMUNDI FUNDS US EQUITY RESEARCH VALUE \"A2\" (USD) ACC","AI":"C3.ai, Inc.","BK4528":"SaaS概念","IBM":"IBM","IMG":"CIMG Inc","LU1585245621.USD":"EASTSPRING INV GLOBAL LOW VOLATILITY EQUITY FUND \"A\" (USD) ACC B","BK4212":"包装食品与肉类","LU1894683348.USD":"AMUNDI FUNDS US EQUITY RESEARCH VALUE \"A2\" (USD) INC","LU1430594728.SGD":"Eastspring Investments - Global Low Volatility Equity AS SGD","BK4612":"AI芯片","BK4585":"ETF&股票定投概念","BK4538":"云计算","BK4579":"人工智能","BK4588":"碎股","LU1674673691.USD":"HSBC GIF GLOBAL LOWER CARBON EQUITY \"AD\" (USD) INC","LU0868494617.USD":"UBS (LUX) EQUITY SICAV - US TOTAL YIELD SUSTAINABLE \"P\" (USD) ACC","LU1674673428.USD":"HSBC GIF GLOBAL LOWER CARBON EQUITY \"AC\" (USD) ACC","LU1883839398.USD":"AMUNDI FUNDS INCOME OPPORTUNITIES \"A2\" (USD) ACC","BK4134":"信息科技咨询与其它服务","BK4551":"寇图资本持仓","BK4023":"应用软件","BK4543":"AI","LU0321505868.SGD":"Schroder ISF Global Dividend Maximiser A Dis SGD","LU1880398471.USD":"AMUNDI FUNDS GLOBAL EQUITY \"A2\" (USD) ACC"},"translate_title":"IMG 2026年值得关注的三大体育赞助趋势","themeId":null,"isJumpTheme":false,"ttsUrl":null,"symbols_score_info":{"IMG":1.5,"IBM":0.9,"AI":0.9},"content_text":"The UFC's partnership with IBM is a case study in using AI to scale and streamline insight generation Look out for higher demands on AI, more prediction markets and greater sophistication in women’s sport sponsorships next year, says IMG partnerships expert Sam Galet.As we close out 2025 and look ahead to 2026, the sports business landscape is once again at an inflection point. Rightsholders, brands and agencies are all asking the same question: where will the next wave of sponsorship investment come from, and which categories will shape the industry conversation? While no forecast is perfect, several clear signals are already emerging. Based on what we are seeing across the market, three trends are poised to define sponsorship strategy and deal-making in 2026.\n\n1. AI goes from experimentation to expectationArtificial intelligence is no longer a “future-facing” talking point – it is quickly becoming table stakes. In 2026, the conversation will shift from whether AI should be deployed to how effectively it is being used. \n\n\n\n\n\n\nNews Updates\nStay ahead with our three daily briefings delivering all the key market moves, top business and political stories, and incisive analysis straight to your inbox.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nFor rightsholders and agencies, AI is already streamlining sponsorship and hospitality sales through faster research, smarter prospecting, automated calendar management, and more efficient development of presentations and sales materials. The operational upside alone is significant.On the fan-facing side, AI is being woven throughout the consumer journey: from personalised content recommendations to conversational chatbots that support ticketing and customer service. The next evolution will see properties embed AI more deeply into the sport itself, using it to generate insights, enhance storytelling and surface data that meaningfully improves the fan experience.\n\nThis creates a powerful sponsorship opportunity when executed with intention, and the partnership between the UFC and IBM is a strong case study. By leveraging AI to streamline and scale insight generation across more than 40 live events, IBM enabled faster, smarter content creation and delivered an estimated three-fold increase in insight volume. In 2026, brands will increasingly expect this level of sophistication, and properties that can clearly articulate AI-driven value will separate themselves in a crowded marketplace.2. Prediction markets further gamify fandomAnother category gaining momentum is prediction markets, which are redefining how fans engage with live sport. These platforms turn passive viewing into active participation by allowing users to trade on event outcomes much like financial markets. The rise of daily fantasy and the continued legalisation of sports betting laid the groundwork; prediction markets represent the next step in that evolution.","kind":"highlight","is_publish_news":true,"is_publish_highlight":false,"is_publish_live":false,"is_publish_wemedia":null,"editions":null,"column":"","sentiment":"0","news_tag":"","news_rank":0,"symbols":[],"gpt_button":0,"need_auth":false,"code":"91000000","status":"200"},"commentList":[],"isCommentEnd":true,"newsSizeData":{"likeSize":0,"commentSize":0,"repostSize":0,"favoriteSize":0,"likeStatus":false,"favoriteStatus":false},"APP":{"userAgent":"Mozilla/5.0 AppleWebKit/537.36 (KHTML, like Gecko; compatible; ClaudeBot/1.0; +claudebot@anthropic.com)","isDev":false,"isTTM":true,"tenantId":"TBGLOBAL","deviceId":"web-server-community-laohu8-v3","version":"4.36.0","shortVersion":"4.36.0","platform":"web","vendor":"web","appName":"ttm","isIOS":false,"isAndroid":false,"isTiger":false,"isTHS":false,"isWeiXin":false,"isWeiXinMini":false,"isWeiBo":false,"isQQ":false,"isBaiduSwan":false,"isBaiduBox":false,"isDingTalk":false,"isToutiao":false,"isOnePlus":false,"isHuaWei":false,"isXiaomi":false,"isXiaomiWebView":false,"isOppo":false,"isVivo":false,"isSamsung":false,"isMobile":false},"href":"/m/news/2595018772","isCrawlerRequest":true}