In a dynamic intersection of travel and sports, 96 tourist boards have active sponsorship deals in place with sports properties from a variety of different sports. A significant number of these agreements involves some of the world’s largest soccer clubs, boasting substantial fanbases from around the globe. Among the highly lucrative deals, eight non-alcoholic beverages deals are worth over $3 million annually, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

GlobalData’s latest report, “Tourist Boards Sponsorship Landscape,” reveals that Visit Rwanda is the biggest spending brand within the sector and has three deals in place. The deals with soccer clubs Arsenal FC and Paris Saint-Germain FC each worth over $8 million annually.

Visit Rwanda’s biggest competitor in the tourist boards sector is Visit Qatar. In 2023 the brand is estimated by GlobalData to be spending roughly $12 million on sponsorship deals. The brand has one single deal in place with the soccer club Paris Saint-Germain FC. The current one-year renewal deal is estimated to be worth $12 million. The French club has a close association with Qatar due to the club being owned by Qatar Sports Investments led by Chairman Nasser Al-Khelaifi.

Tom Subak-Sharpe, Sport Analyst at GlobalData, comments: “Compared to many other sectors such as technology and the alcoholic beverages sectors, tourist boards brands are spending relatively low amounts of money on sponsorship opportunities.”

However, some tourist boards, especially those based in the Middle East have managed to secure deals with popular sport properties.

Subak-Sharpe continues: “In the long-term future it is not expected that the majority of tourist boards will be increasing their spend on sponsorship opportunities. It is worth noting that tourist boards based in the Middle East most likely will be keeping an eye on sponsorship openings with major sport properties. For instance, since becoming closely associated with major sport properties in various sports, Saudi Arabia’s tourist board has been trying to attract more tourists to the country, meaning they constantly will be searching for new sponsorship opportunities to further spread the brand exposure of the nation.”