The Untapped Power of Youth Sports Sponsorships: Live from SBJ Brand Innovation Summit
Youth sports sponsorship is undergoing a remarkable transformation, and brands are beginning to recognize the immense opportunity within this space.
At the recent Sports Business Journal Brand Innovation Summit, Karl Mawhinney, CEO of Campus Multimedia, and other industry leaders shared valuable insights on how brands can authentically engage with young athletes and their communities.
High School Sports Sponsorship — A Golden Opportunity for Brands in 2025
In 2025, the youth sports space is more than Friday Night Lights. It represents community, resilience, and growth. For brands and local businesses, supporting youth sports isn’t just about sponsoring a team, but investing in the epicenter of their business’s core customer demographic while building trust and loyalty.
Maya Steeves, Vice President of Media Partnerships and Field Marketing at Tropical Smoothie Cafe, said, “Local business owners rely on the community as the core of their business. So, it’s really important for them to ingrain themselves in the youth sports space.”
It builds brand affinity in ways we’ve never seen before. Students, staff, and families are choosing brands that not only show up in youth sports spaces but also authentically support them.
They are building partnerships that go beyond customer service and product satisfaction, and into life-long customer loyalty.
The Challenge: Turning Vast Potential into Cohesive Strategy
Despite the incredible potential, the youth sports space can be difficult to navigate. When asked about the growing interest in sports marketing in the youth sports spaces, Karl stated, “While the opportunities are vast, the space is very fragmented.”
With thousands of leagues, districts, and schools, many brands don’t know where to begin, or how to scale their efforts without breaking their backs…or the bank.
Traditional approaches often require negotiating individual deals, managing countless partnerships, and writing hundreds or thousands of checks. It’s time-consuming, inefficient, and ultimately limits the scale and impact of sponsorships.
How Campus Multimedia Bridges the Gap
84,000 Schools Aggregated into One Powerful Network
That’s where Campus Multimedia (CM) changes the game. CM has aggregated partnerships with 84,000 elementary, middle, and high schools, creating a single access point for brands looking to engage nationwide, without the headache of managing thousands of separate deals.
Turn-Key Solutions for Smart Brand Activation
CM offers turn-key sponsorship solutions that align with a brand’s mission, making it easy to activate programs that create real community impact.
We are able to take the goals of a brand and build programs, campaigns, contests, and initiatives that meet the needs of a school’s sports programs in a way that builds a lasting relationship between a brand and its community.
Brands don’t have to get bogged down in the logistics of scaling their efforts to thousands of schools across the country; they just need the right partner.
Why Brands Can’t Afford to Miss Partnering with Schools
Investing in high school sports offers brands a chance to support communities, inspire youth, and build connections that last a lifetime.
With the right strategies and partners, brands can turn this opportunity into a powerful force for good—and for growth. As brands look to connect with young audiences, youth sports represent a powerful and authentic opportunity.
The insights shared at the Sports Business Journal Brand Innovation Summit underscore the importance of purpose, scalability, and authenticity. As Karl put it, “The era of brands investing in youth sports is here, and we are hoping to lead the way.”
Let’s explore how your brand can make an impact in the youth sports space. Contact us for your brand activation kit.
About Jess Ledwell: Jess is a seasoned Copywriter and Strategic Content Manager at Campus Multimedia, where she leads the development of compelling narratives that connect brands with school communities. With nearly a decade of experience writing and editing blogs and seven years of teaching High School English, Jess has a sharp instinct for content that performs, pairing data-driven insight with compelling stories of educational success.