Ann Appl Sport Sci 7(1): 57-81, 2019. http://www.aassjournal.com; e-ISSN: 2322–4479; p-ISSN: 2476–4981. 10.29252/aassjournal.7.1.57 *. Corresponding Author: Sara Keshkar, Associate Professor P.O. Box: 1489684511, Faculty of Sport Science, AllamehTabataba’i University, Shahid Hemmat West, Dehkadeh -y-Olympic, Tehran, Iran. E-mail: keshkar@atu.ac.ir ∞. These authors contributed equally REVIEW ARTICLE The Role of Culture in Sports Sponsorship: an Update 1 Sara Keshkar * , 2 Ian Lawrence ∞ , 3 Mark Dodds ∞ , 3 Erin Morris ∞ , 3 Tara Mahoney ∞ , 4 Kevin Heisey ∞ , 5 Francesco Addesa ∞ , 6 David P. Hedlund ∞ , 7 Geoff Dickson ∞ , 8 Hamid Ghasemi ∞ , 5 Abdullah Faruq ∞ , 9 Michael Naylor ∞ , 10 James Santomier, Jr. ∞ 1 Allameh Tabataba’i University, Tehran, Iran. 2 Teesside University Business School, UK. 3 SUNY Cortland, Cortland, New York, USA. 4 Liberty University, Lynchburg, Virginia, USA. 5 Leeds Beckett University, Leeds, West Yorkshire, UK. 6 College of Professional Studies, St. John’s University, New York, USA. 7 La Trobe Business School, Melbourne, Australia. 8 Payame Noor University, Tehran, Iran. 9 Auckland University of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand. 10 Sacred Heart University, Fairfield, Connecticut, USA. Submitted 07 August 2018; Accepted in final form 07 October 2019. ABSTRACT ………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 57 INTRODUCTION …………………………………………………………………………………………………... 58 SPORTS SPONSORSHIP AND THE CULTURE OF SOCIETY …………………………………………………. 58 SPORTS SPONSORSHIP AND SPORTS CULTURE …………………………………………………………….. 60 SPORTS SPONSORSHIP AND SOCIAL NORMS AND VALUES ……………………………………………… 62 SPORT SPONSORSHIP AND ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE …………………………………………………63 SPORTS SPONSORSHIP, CULTURE AND ADVERTISEMENT ……………………………………………….. 65 SPORTS SPONSORSHIP AND SYMBOLS …………………………………………………………………….… 66 SPORT SPONSORSHIP AND RELIGION …………………………………………………………………….….. 68 SPORTS SPONSORSHIP, CULTURE AND MEDIA …………………………………………………………….. 70 SPONSORS BRAND IMAGE VS ATHLETE’S SOCIAL IMAGE …………………………………….……….... 71 SPORT SPONSORSHIP & SEXUALITY ……………………………………………………………………….… 73 DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION AND SPORT SPONSORSHIP …………………………………….……………74 CONCLUSION ……………………………………………………………………………………………….…..… 76 ABSTRACT Nowadays sponsorship is an important part of sports events. Sports sponsorship offers more benefits, more variety and also it’s a more powerful form of marketing. In general, sponsorship holds a unique position in the marketing mix because it is effective in building brand awareness, provides different marketing platforms and valuable networking and hospitality opportunities. Sponsorship marketing efforts can be influenced by culture. Especially when global sponsorship in sports which refers to sports events in different countries with different cultures, is under consideration. In such situations, sponsorship aspects can be affected by cultural obligations which are discussed in this article. KEY WORDS: Sports, Sponsorship, Culture, Society, Social Norms, Social Values, Organizational Culture, Advertisement, Symbols, Religion, Media, Sponsors, Brand Image, Athlete, Social Image, Sexuality, Digital Transformation. Downloaded from aassjournal.com at 13:43 +0330 on Sunday January 20th 2019