Sports Specialist Moves in with YouGov

YouGov has taken a minority stake in SMG Insight, a sports marketing consultancy, and announced an alliance aimed at delivering higher value added services for the global sports marketing industry.

SMG, which was launched in April by Frank Saez, will move into YouGov's office in London.

The firms say the deal combines YouGov's in depth knowledge of consumers and brands with SMG's understanding of sponsorship and rights ownership. Potential clients include rights holders, sponsors, brands and agencies, and services will include measuring sponsorship opportunities and optimising sponsorship objectives.

Saez, formerly VP of Comperio Research, a division of international sports agency IMG for more than eight years and recently MD of IFM Sports Marketing Surveys, leads SMG Insight as MD. Saez says many traditional sports and sponsorship market research services have 'become less insightful and obsolete', and that the partnership 'provides SMG Insight with an opportunity to provide the sports and sponsorship industry with higher added value services, delivering much more than traditional media valuations'.

YouGov's UK CEO Tim Britton comments: 'We are delighted to join up with SMG Insight. Their deep understanding of the sports sector combined with our unparalleled ability to pinpoint and monitor consumer behaviour in this area will provide the sports industry with a great new stream of insight'.

Web site: www.smg-insight.com .