What opportunities does Rolex see in supporting the Amundi Evian Championship?


By: July 21, 2022


The Amundi Evian Championship (21–24 July, Evian Resort Golf Club) is the only Major played in continental Europe. Rolex, a partner of the event for more than 20 years, will once again be the Official Timekeeper.

Rolex is a partner of the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) for more than 40 years, it is the Official Timekeeper of all 5 women’s Majors.

Among the past winners returning to play at The Amundi Evian Championship is Rolex Testimonee Lydia Ko.

Amundi Evian Championship fans

Competing alongside these established champions will be the Rolex New Guard, a group of supremely talented young golfers who play with skill, integrity, and respect for the game’s traditions.

This year’s championship has had a considerable increase in prize money, with a total of US$6.5 million available and US$1 million awarded to the winner.

The 2022 Amundi Evian Championship – fan engagement & reach

Thanks to the proliferation of content across platforms people have much more access to sports content. This presents an array of opportunities for both rights holders and brands alike, and it shows the growing importance of sports-related content.

Nielsen says

“In total, 47% of the people who watch sports on TV or digital platforms simultaneously watch other live content, much higher than the general population (33%).

In recent years, we have seen the growth of social media video content engagement rate and popularity. Twitch and TikTok were the big winners in 2021. Surprisingly, Facebook and YouTube declined a little bit…

The good news for sponsors like Rolex is that people still have trust in sponsors of sporting events. However, brands should not focus solely on brand awareness, but rather look for opportunities for relationship building with fans.

Amundi Evian Championship trophy

To build such relationships competitors/tour players should have a significant role to improve brand preference and trust.

This aligns with the growth seen by micro and nano influencers who are much more engaged with their followers than the mega influencers.

For this reason, brands should shift their strategies away from “bigger is better” and instead focus on micro & nano influencers.

As a micro-influencer with 60,000+ followers, I am more responsive and flexible than those who have over half a million followers. I dare to say my connections are really personal. This way I can do a much bigger impact on driving behavior (e.g. request a product demo, book a golf holiday, etc.).

Lydia Ko Amundi Evian Championship

One of the biggest sports marketing trends in 2022 is OTT content. I am sure you use one of these leading OTT content providers: Netflix, Amazon Prime, Disney+, YouTubeTV, etc.

In 2021 Q2, we watched 9 billion hours of streaming content worldwide. The PGA Tour is already using YouTube TV to reach and engage more people.

It is an effective communication channel to reach Millennials and Generation Z.