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Networking Opportunities

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What differentiates our event from every other industry conference is the people you will meet, the conversations you will have and the partnerships that will grow out of them.

Join 1,200 industry leaders in Chicago and you will come away smarter, more connected and better able to tackle the toughest partnership challenges.

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Who’s Attending

Every year, more than 1,200 marketers representing the biggest brands, blue-chip properties and leading media and content companies attend. They are the brightest, most creative and most influential people across sports, entertainment, media, nonprofit and other types of partnership marketing.

If you are responsible for developing stronger, more meaningful and more lucrative partnerships, then this conference is for you. If your responsibilities include sponsorship, brand partnerships, social/digital integration, fan/audience engagement, content development or media buying, don’t miss IEG 2018!

Just a few of the companies already registered for IEG 2018:

AB InBev • Aetna • AMC and SundanceTV • America First Credit Union • American Bar Association • American Dental Education Association • American Family Insurance • American Medical Association • Aquarium of the Pacific • Arizona Coyotes • Arizona Exposition & State Fair • Art Institute of Chicago • AS Roma • ASB Bank • Asian-Canadian Special Events Association • Atlanta Hawks & Philips Arena • Australian Ballet • Barstool Sports • BBVA • BC Dairy Association • Be Strong • BET Networks • Big Ten Network • Blue Cross and Blue Shield • BMO Harris Bank • BMW of North America • Boeing Company • Bose Corporation • Boston Properties • Boy Scouts of America • Boys & Girls Clubs of America • Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment • Canadian Film Centre • CDW • Chevron • Chicago Bears Football Club • Chicago Blackhawks • Chicago Bulls • Chicago Event Management • Children's Cancer Research Fund • Children's Mercy Hospital • Cigna • Cisco Systems • City of Columbus • City of Jacksonville • City of Leduc • City of McAllen, Parks & Recreation • City of Miami Beach • Cleveland Museum of Art • Club Managers Association of America • Coca-Cola • Colleges Ontario • ComEd • Constellation Brands • Dana-Farber Cancer Institute • Dell EMC • Deloitte • Dentsu Inc. • Denver Arts & Venues • Denver Zoological Foundation • Detroit Pistons • DFW Airport • Doctors Without Borders • DOW • Drone Racing League • Drum Corps International • DTE Energy • Dunkin' Brands • Durham Performing Arts Center • Eastern States Exposition - The Big E • European Golf Tour • Eventbrite • Expo Intel • FC Barcelona • Fidelity Investments • Fifth Third Bank • First Financial Bank • Fox Theatre • Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center • Freshii • Fullscreen Media • Golden State Warriors • Greater Miami Convention & Visitors Bureau • Hamilton County Sports Authority • Hampton Classic Horse Show • Hartford Marathon Foundation • Havas Sports & Entertainment • Hood River Distillers • Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo • Humana • Huntington Bank • Hurricane SAS • IBM • iHeartMedia • IMG • Indiana State Fair Commission • Indianapolis Zoological Society • Infor • International Association of Venue Managers • Interstate Battery System of America • IRONMAN • Jack in the Box • Kalamazoo Wings • KPN • LA Philharmonic • Ladies Professional Golf Association • Lagunitas Brewing Company • Live Nation Entertainment • Living Beyond Breast Cancer • Make-A-Wish® International • Marine Corps Marathon • Mary Kay Incorporated • MassMutual Financial Group • MAVTV • MB Financial • Memphis Grizzlies • Metro Parks Tacoma • MGM Resorts International • Miami Heat • MillerCoors • Million Dollar Round Table • Milwaukee World Festival / Summerfest • Mondelez International • Monterey Jazz Festival • Monumental Sports Network • Nashville Convention & Visitors Corporation • Nashville Soccer Club • National Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum • National Basketball Association (NBA) • National Cherry Festival • National Lacrosse League • NBC Universal • New World Symphony • New York Hall of Science • New York Jets Football Club • New York Red Bulls • NFL Players Association • Novant Health Charlotte Marathon • Oakland Museum of California • OC Fair & Event Center • Oregon Shakespeare Festival • Oregon Zoo Foundation • Orlando Health Foundation • Pegula Sports and Entertainment • Port Metro Vancouver • Principal • Prudential • Rakuten • RBC Global Asset Management • Red Bull Air Race GmbH • Red Bull GmbH • San Manuel Indian Bingo & Casino • Science Museum of Minnesota • Science World British Columbia • SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment • Sesame Workshop • Share Our Strength - No Kid Hungry • ShowPro • Smithsonian Institution • Sony Centre For The Performing Arts • Sony Pictures Entertainment • South Carolina State Museum Foundation • Space Center Houston • Spartan Race • Special Olympics • Standard Life • Starbucks Coffee Company • Tampa Bay Buccaneers • Tampa's Lowry Park Zoo • TE Connectivity • Tennessee State Soccer Association • Texas Association of School Business Officials • T-Mobile • Travel Portland • tronc • Tulip Time • Turnkey Sports • Tuscaloosa Tourism & Sports • Twitch • Twitter • U.S. Army • U.S. Fund for UNICEF • United States Tennis Association • University of California • University of Florida • University of Maryland • University of Michigan • University of Oregon • University of Southern California • University of Washington Alumni Association • USA Track & Field • USS Midway Museum • Utah's Hogle Zoo • Valparaiso University • Visa • VISIT Charlotte • Visit Denver • Visit Florida • Visit Houston • Visit Laguna Beach • Visit Seattle • Walton Arts Center • Warner Music Nashville • Wheeler Mission Drumstick Dash • Wildlife Conservation Society - Bronx Zoo • Winnipeg Folk Festival • Women of Tomorrow Mentor & Scholarship Program • World Poker Tour • Wounded Warrior Project • Zions Bank

Attendee Demographics

Global Network

22 countries were represented last year.

22 countries represented: Australia, Bahamas, Brazil, Canada, China, Finland, Germany,
Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, The Netherlands, United Kingdom, USA

Company Type

Most Represented Brand Types: Banks / Financial Services, Insurance, Computer & Info Systems, Beverages, Food, Auto

Most Represented Property Types: Sports, Causes, Entertainment, Zoos / Museums / Aquariums, Associations, Arts

Company Types: Properties: 56%; Brands: 20%; Agencies: 20%; Industry Suppliers/Other: 4%

Title Breakdown

CEO, CMO, President, EVP, SVP, GM: 35%, VP: 34%, Manager/Director: 16%, Account Executive: 11%, Other: 4%

Attend with a Colleague?

49% attend solo; 51% attende with a colleague

“It was great to network with others within your industry and abroad. Learned some good ideas and shared some good best practices.” Anaheim Ducks Hockey Club

“Great for meeting with potential partners face-to-face. Good networking opportunities.” WME|IMG

Delegates Attend from around the World

The map below represents the home countries of current and recent delegates to the IEG Annual Conference and illustrates the international scope of the conference and of the sponsorship industry.

Home countries of IEG Conference delegates

Is IEG 2018 Relevant for Professionals outside the U.S.?

If you need to address any of the following challenges, geography doesn’t matter! There is no better place to be than Chicago April 8-11, 2018.

How to evaluate return from your company’s or your corporate partners’ sponsorships
How to determine fair market value for sponsorship fees
How to incorporate social media activation into your partnerships
How to negotiate benefits that achieve both short-term goals and long-term strategic objectives
Identifying new strategies to make sure your sponsorship revenue meets or exceeds goals

Networking Opportunities

Small-group Round Table Discussions

Led by industry experts, these sessions are designed to share information in a more collegial setting vs. formal presentations and workshops.

Special Interest Groups (SIGs)

Join a SIG (for entertainment/ festivals/ events, sports, causes, associations, or cultural institutions) to meet and share ideas with your peers. You can start your discussion online before the conference and continue the conversation during the conference at the SIG group meetings.

Event App

Download the event app giving you the ability to network with all attendees — making it easy to setup meetings during the conference and follow-up afterwards. Plus, instant access to the schedule, session documentation, and much more.

Social Media

Follow us on Twitter at @ESPprops for speaker updates and more. If you would like to ask a question or make a comment about the conference on Twitter, please use #IEG2018. Or join our LinkedIn Group.

Topic- and Industry-specific Networking Luncheons

On Monday and Tuesday, you have the chance to meet and share experiences with others in your industry or discuss specific topics and types of sponsorship with knowledgeable peers.

Breakfast Networking

An hour each day (Monday through Wednesday) is set aside exclusively for private discussions with your fellow attendees over breakfast. A perfect time to schedule a meeting to build better relationships.

Opening Reception

Sunday evening’s conference kick-off is the perfect place to see who’s at the conference and begin conversations over drinks and food before the event revs into high gear Monday morning.

Off-site Reception

On Monday night, we will take a short trip to a Chicago landmark, where you can mix and mingle with newfound colleagues and friends while enjoying great food and drink.

Cocktail Reception

As we wind down Day Two on Tuesday, socialize with sponsorship’s best and brightest as you relax and recap all that has been shared so far. Discuss new ideas, check out innovations from our exhibitors and solidify your plans for a great night on the town in the Windy City.

Morning Run

On Monday and Tuesday, join us for a two- to five-mile run along Chicago’s incredible lakefront.