Key Dates in the History of Sports Marketing
ACTIVITY
1. _____ Cincinnati Red Stockings become the first sports team in history to have each member
of the team on salary
2. _____ First known individual player endorsement deal between golfer Gene Sarazen and
Wilson Sporting Goods
3. _____ Coke teams up with the Olympics as an “official sponsor” of an athletic event
4. _____ The first major female endorsement deal takes place with Wilson Sporting Goods
agreeing to sponsor the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA)
5. _____ Eccentric owner of the Chicago White Sox, Bill Veeck, sends 3’7” Eddie Gaedel to the
plate in an official game as a publicity ploy as one of the most outrageous promotions seen in
professional sports
6. _____ An all sports television network makes its debut on cable television as the world gets its first
glimpse of ESPN
7. _____ Evidence of the power of an alliance between corporations and sports is taken to a new
level as Syracuse University becomes the first college to offer naming rights to a facility as they
introduce the “Carrier Dome”
8. _____ The Olympics become commercialized, and made profitable for the first time under the
leadership of Peter Ueberoth
9. _____ The lucrative possibilities of naming rights reaches new heights as the Chicago Bears
become the first professional franchise to sell the naming rights of their team as Bank One
becomes the “presenting” sponsor and in all media the team is mentioned as “The Chicago
Bears presented by Bank One”
10. _____ An estimated 1.2 billion people across the globe watch the World Cup Final,
accounting for 17% of the World’s population
11. _____ NBC officials project an Olympic record of their own, suggesting Beijing advertising sales will
top $1 billion for the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing
1979
1951
2008
2003
1980
1984
1923
2006
1928
1869
1949
Key Dates in the History of Sports Marketing
ACTIVITY (KEY)
1. _1869_ Cincinnati Red Stockings become the first sports team in history to have each member
of the team on salary
2. _1923_ First known individual player endorsement deal between golfer Gene Sarazen and
Wilson Sporting Goods
3. _1928_ Coke teams up with the Olympics as an “official sponsor” of an athletic event
4. _1949_ The first major female endorsement deal takes place with Wilson Sporting Goods
agreeing to sponsor the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA)
5. _1951_ Eccentric owner of the Chicago White Sox, Bill Veeck, sends 3’7” Eddie Gaedel to the
plate in an official game as a publicity ploy as one of the most outrageous promotions seen in
professional sports
6. _1979_ An all sports television network makes its debut on cable television as the world gets its first
glimpse of ESPN
7. _1980_ Evidence of the power of an alliance between corporations and sports is taken to a new
level as Syracuse University becomes the first college to offer naming rights to a facility as they
introduce the “Carrier Dome”
8. _1984_ The Olympics become commercialized, and made profitable for the first time under the
leadership of Peter Ueberoth
9. _2003_ The lucrative possibilities of naming rights reaches new heights as the Chicago Bears
become the first professional franchise to sell the naming rights of their team as Bank One
becomes the “presenting” sponsor and in all media the team is mentioned as “The Chicago
Bears presented by Bank One”
10. _2006_ An estimated 1.2 billion people across the globe watch the World Cup Final,
accounting for 17% of the World’s population
11. _2008_ NBC officials project an Olympic record of their own, suggesting advertising sales will top $1
billion for the Summer Olympics
1869
1979
2008
1951
1980
2003
1923
1984
1928
2006
1949
Key Dates in the History of Entertainment Marketing
ACTIVITY
1. _____ Outdoor entertainment and recreational games are introduced, such as
bowling, music and dancing
2. _____ Recording and sound on motion picture film is developed
3. _____ The first radio stations begin airing regularly scheduled programming
4. _____ RCA establishes the National Broadcasting Company (NBC)
5. _____ The first color television sets are offered to consumers
6. _____ Disneyland opens in Anaheim, California
7. _____ The first regional theme park, Six Flags, opens in Texas
8. _____ Turner Cable Network launches the first all news television network, CNN
9. _____ IBM makes the first personal computers available for consumers and Music Television
(MTV) is launched
11. _____ The first compact disc is released
12. _____ Nintendo introduces its home entertainment system for video games
13. _____ Sean “Puffy” Combs launches Bad Boy Entertainment
14. _____ German inventor Fraunhofer Gesellschaft receives a patent for MP3 technology
15. _____ Apple introduces iTunes, the first commercial online music service
16. _____ Talladega Nights movie sets new records for product placement while becoming the
first feature film to incorporate a full 30 second corporate advertisement (Applebee’s)
1985
1996
1961
1955
1981
1980
1931
2006
1920
1951
2003
1983
1550-1700
1991
1919
Key Dates in the History of Entertainment Marketing
ACTIVITY (Key)
1. _1550_ Outdoor entertainment and recreational games are introduced, such as
bowling, music and dancing
2. _1919_ Recording and sound on motion picture film is developed
3. _1920_ The first radio stations begin airing regularly scheduled programming
4. _1931 _ RCA establishes the National Broadcasting Company (NBC)
5. _1951_ The first color television sets are offered to consumers
6. _1955_ Disneyland opens in Anaheim, California
7. _1961 _ The first regional theme park, Six Flags, opens in Texas
8. _1980 _ Turner Cable Network launches the first all news television network, CNN
9. _1981_ IBM makes the first personal computers available for consumers and Music Television
(MTV) is launched
11. _1983 _ The first compact disc is released
12. _1985 _ Nintendo introduces its home entertainment system for video games
13. _1991 _ Sean “Puffy” Combs launches Bad Boy Entertainment
14. _1996 _ German inventor Fraunhofer Gesellschaft receives a patent for MP3 technology
15. _2003 _ Apple introduces iTunes, the first commercial online music service
16. _2006 _ Talladega Nights movie sets new records for product placement while becoming the
first feature film to incorporate a full 30 second corporate advertisement (Applebee’s)
1985
1996
1961
1955
1981
1980
1931
2006
1920
1951
2003
1983
1550-1700
1991
1919