On the 18th of March 2011 former athletes, sport governing bodies, charities, marketers and lawyers met at the offices of the event sponsor, Charles Russell LLP, in London to discuss the relationship between the sport industry and corporate social responsibility (CSR). The question put forward at the conference by the organizers SportBusiness Group was, "How will the relationship between sport, brands and social projects develop in the years ahead"?

Now in it’s third year, it again proved a popular event with around 120 people in attendance. The conference facilities were good and the event was well organised with plenty of staff on hand to assist with any queries or questions. Throughout the day they were many opportunities to share industry information and ideas and network with fellow guests and speakers.

The conference was split into three main categories: charities, sports and brands. And the relationship within this triangle proving crucial for

The brands category discussed how businesses work with sports organisations as part of their CSR programmes to help local communities while increasing brand exposure. With an increasing affinity to social responsibility Kirk Harrison (Barclays Spaces for Sports), Heather Smith (Aviva), Jon Lloyd (Corporate Citizenship) and Eric Anderson (BT) shared their experiences of working with sport as part of their CSR programmes. This provided guest with an insight into what brands should consider when undertaking a CSR project, such as, human capital, financial support and an exit strategy. The discussions centered on protecting brands and returns on investment, which can also be a risk to the charity as well. Examples were given were charities have become reliant on the support of these big brands only to become unstuck when the brand decides to support another charity. Heather Smith highlighted the importance of brands discussing with charities at the outset to plan an exit strategy to ensure that charities work is sustainable once the support finishes. Encouragingly, for the charities, a research presented by Mitch Markson (Edelman) found that customers are now placing greater weight on brands CSR policies when deciding to purchase goods or services. This should mean brands start to take greater interest in supporting charitable organisations.

The marketers and business people started to look unsettled when Paul Stone, a partner at Charles Russell, started to discuss the implications of the about the Bribery Act 2010. Paul went into detail about the risks to businesses falling foul of the act if they spend lavish amounts of money on corporate hospitality. Paul did well to kept the talk lighthearted and there was a sigh of relief when Paul informed the audience that further guidance is expected sometime in April that should give clearer guidelines.

The event didn’t solely focus on brand issues; we also heard about charitable causes from two former professional athletes, in Paul Elliott (Soccer – Charlton, Luton, Aston Villa, Pisa, Celtic and Chelsea) and Jack Brewer (NFL - Minnesota Vikings, New York Giants, Philadelphia Eagles, and the Arizona Cardinals) who gave examples of how sport can work with social projects to create a positive change. Paul works for Kick It Out (www.kickitout.org) campaign, football's equality and inclusion campaign group. It is good to hear that things have moved on since Paul’s playing days. Racial discrimination no longer being acceptable in sport that highlights the positive impact sport can have on society. Jack Brewer gave example of sportsmen and women who have been activists for social change over the years such as Muhammad Ali and Arthur Ashe. However, he was conserved about the lack of involvement of modern athlete in social change. It was interesting to contrast the perception of the modern professional athletes who don’t appear to be as active outside of their responsibilities to their clubs or sport compared to some athletes of old. Jack puts this down to the people around the athletes who do not have an incentive to help athlete in engage in activities that will not make money.  Jack works with Peace and Sport (www.peace-sport.org) to help provide a framework for athletes to use sport as a means to help educate young generations to help better themselves and their society. Hopefully people like Jack and Paul will continue to encourage others to take positive steps to use their influence to effect change.

The event was positive with a clear message that sport can be a stimulus for social change. If sport, brands and social projects can work together towards common objectives then the result will be beneficial to everyone. However, if there is to be any real benefit from these activities they must be sustainable rather than short-term fixes. I agree entirely with Kevin Roberts, Editorial Director of SportBusiness Group, who said in his closing remarks: “The measure of its (the relationship between sport, brands and social projects) success will be based on the sustainability of these activities”.

By Sean Cottrell,

Editor of Lawinsport.com

For reference here are examples of the charitable organisations represented:

Sports Taider is a youth focused Community Interest Company offering youngsters the kit an support they need to get into sport. We encourage children to try new sports, and help talented sporting youngsters excel, whatever their background.

http://www.sportstraider.org/

Kick It Out works throughout the football, educational and community sectors to challenge discrimination, encourage inclusive practices and work for positive change.

http://www.kickitout.org/2.php

The Blue Mile – Race for the Environment is the UK’s newest mass-participation event designed to get the nation immersed in our wonderful watery environment and encourages everyone to take some steps to look after it.

http://www.thebluemile.org/