Marketing Guru
THE FOUNDING FATHER OF SPORTS MARKETING
Patrick Nally’s vision and innovation was channeled through West Nally – the company he formed with UK broadcast legend Peter West – to create a revolution which has shaped the sector to this very day.
The beginning
At West Nally Patrick was responsible for bringing Coca Cola into football; first as the corporate backer of FIFA’s global development programme, then as sponsor of the first World Junior Championship, Tunisia 1977 and finally as a founder member of the Inter Soccer 4 programme which generated previously unimaginable sponsorship revenues for major FIFA and UEFA competitions. Coca Cola remains a committed sponsor of the FIFA World Cup and Olympic Games among other properties which have been shaped by Nally’s trail-blazing approach.A revolutionary approach
The impact of Nally’s work cannot be over-estimated. It created a revolution in sports marketing which involved the identification, ownership and branding of rights and assets which could then be packaged and offered to category specific sponsors. This seminal advance ensured valuable exclusivity over a defined and protected set of rights for sponsor brands and, in doing so, ensured that rights owners benefited from previously unheard of fee levels while brands were empowered to create powerful and hugely effective campaigns. It was an approach which demanded a fresh mind-set from governing bodies and event hosts which had previously struggled to manage commercial activities.Patrick Nally is often described as the ‘founding father of modern sports marketing’ and a principal pioneer of today’s sports business industry.
Patrick has worked with most of the world’s major governing bodies including the International Olympic Committee, International Association of Athletics Federations, International Rugby Board, the International Tennis Federation, the International Hockey Federation, and the re-structure of the Davis Cup, developing and refining his approach to meet their individual circumstances.
This is now
Patrick Nally's work has shaped the way the business operates worldwide. And today he continues to work with many of the world’s best known brands and leading sports properties and Federations to create outstanding commercial value and marketing benefit for all parties. He also works on behalf of cities bidding to host major events.
Nally remains one of the best connected individuals and most effective radical thinkers in sports marketing and is at the heart of thought-leadership in the sector through his consultancy work. His unique insight into sport and its commercial and media partners, together with his deep reservoir of knowledge, and record of innovation within the sector is aligned to an innate understanding of the needs and culture of brands. This allows him to create consultative pathways designed to guide them towards their goals.
The results are clear, objective-driven strategies and activation which harnesses the huge power of sports to the greatest effect in achieving the specific and measurable goals of client companies and organisations.
FACT 1
In 1970 Peter West and Patrick Nally founded the West Nally Group.
FACT 2
West Nally employed over 400 staff in its heyday in the 1980s and 1990s.
FACT 3
West Nally brokered a partnership between FIFA and Coca Cola that has lasted nearly 40 years.