The power of sports influencers

It’s important to understand the aspects of the human experience that appeal most strongly to the masses. And when you think about this subject, your mind is drawn irresistibly to sports. 

Sport has the power to move nations, communities, races - people all over the world. Given the enormous importance that sport has in so many of our lives, we have to ask the big question: When it comes to advertising and influencer marketing, why are sports ambassadors such big movers and shakers?

It’s all about their reach, their fame and their unique story. And this is not a recent phenomenon; athletes are, arguably, the original influencers who have shown down the years how they could have an amazing impact on the marketing of a product. 

Why is this? It’s because of the massive, and devoted, fanbase who follow their every move.

Leading sportspeople have the ability to touch the lives of people across the world. Like movie stars, they can bring together nations and communities around the globe. 

Look at Kylian Mbappe. The French striker became an ambassador for Dior - already a mega brand - and helped them to double their sales of Sauvage. Giving the same role to an unknown face, or even an Instagram influencer, would have had a fraction of that oomph. 

The most famous example of a sports influencer is Michael Jordan. When His Airness signed up with businesses like Nike, Hanes, and many more, it had a gigantic impact on the marketing industry and changed the face of sport - not to mention social media and the digital world. Millions of people found themselves racing to sports outlets to get that last pair of MJ shoes, and the power of sports influencers was unleashed upon the world. 

By the end of 2022, according to an article in Forbes, the influencer marketing industry will be worth $4billion. Actually, given the surge in demand for influencers and creators to grow customer numbers through their social media platforms, this figure isn’t too surprising. 

The power of athletes and Instagram influencers to boost marketing campaigns isn’t restricted to multinationals. Small businesses and start-up brands can benefit just as much. If you want to make a difference commercially - but also socially - the key is creativity. If you make influencer marketing central to your brand, you can reach people all over the world and spread the good word about your brand.  

Here at CAI, we are very proud to welcome our first sports influencer, footballer Sam Cox. Sam turned pro with Tottenham in 2009 and has since played in the EFL and the National League, and captained the Guyana national team - which, in 2019, made history by reaching the CONCACAF Gold Cup for the first time. Sam also works as an under-15 coach at the Spurs academy, and recently launched his own coaching business “The Sam Cox Academy”. ​​​​​​​​

You may be wondering, how do I connect with my favourite influencer? Well, do you know a sports influencer who has tons of experience and knowledge they’d love to share? Give us a recommendation of your favourites - in all sports, not just football - because we’d love to watch this category grow with some amazing sports influencers.