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Hunter S. Thompson once wrote an article for Playboy about the (then) recently retired world-class French skier Jean Claude Killy. The piece, entitled The Temptations of Jean-Claude Killy, was a scathing look at what goes into the marketing of a sportsman. Thompson in his typical style wrote that he “was embarrassed for [Killy]” when he saw the former great sportsman “schilling for a few dollars.”
That was back in the seventies when marketing sports stars was a relatively new phenomenon. These days, virtually every major achiever in sport is a brand in their own right; David Beckham, Roger Federer and Lewis Hamilton are just as recognizable as Adidas, Nike or Reebok – their respective sponsor-partners.
But what about further down the food chain? When you have yet to achieve global megastar status, and domination of your sport is as yet out of reach, how do you go about getting the sponsorship that can turn an average career into a great one?
In no sport is this more crucial than motor racing. This is a sport where drivers can compete at the very highest level by effectively paying to play – unlike most other sports, only the very rich, or the very fortunate, get to compete.
For those drivers outside the elite (and even, in some cases, within the elite, such as the rear of the Formula One grid) the aim of sports marketing is to create visibility that will attract sponsors. Sponsorship brings resources, which in turn leads to better results and more visibility. Unlike, say, football (where the best players tend to make it through) motor racing is first and foremost about resources.

MONEY MATTERS. Zaamin Jaffer is an Indian-born, Dubai-raised circuit driver who is typical of many who ply their trade in the lower reaches of motor sport; he is a pragmatist. “Sponsorship is almost as important as driving ability in motor sport. No money no drive. With the current economic climate, a lot of drivers have failed to secure budgets required to progress up the ladder and some may not ever race professionally again. This shows the importance of funding to succeed in motor sport,” he says.
Jaffer – who is currently third in the rookie standings of the MSA Formula Ford Championship of Great Britain – was recently taken on as a client by Active PR in Dubai. That may seem like a strange choice, given Active’s usual clients are technology firms, but according to Active’s managing director, Louay Al Samarrai, there are “very few” real differences between marketing a sports person and a product.
“A personality that is being built into a brand comes with human qualities and ‘core brand values’ that are distinctive to that product,” he says. “Whereas a person’s character, livelihood and success is dependent very much on the achievements of that person, with products the ‘core brand values’ tend to be evolved as the product is developed, or applied to it with a view to appealing to its various target audiences. The success of that product can be managed and the core brand values can evolve. This is not so easy when you are talking about a Tiger Woods, a Michael Owen or a successful racing driver like Zaamin Jaffer.”
While Jaffer is not yet a Michael Owen or Tiger Woods, Active is hoping that its backing of him (he doesn’t pay for their services yet) through various channels including the media will lead to a sponsorship deal. This in turn should see Jaffer’s performances improve and justify Active’s investment in the driver. Of course Al Samarrai admits that developing a product and a sports person are two very different things. “It is easier to [market the person] when they are doing well, or at least have the potential to reach the top of their game in a short period of time. It is more challenging when they are in decline or are having a series of bad performances, let alone any personal challenges they may be experiencing that – rightly or wrongly – attract media attention.”

DRIVEN TO SUCCEED. Though it is unlikely that Jaffer will be found on the back pages of the tabloids right away, he is determined to make his dream – reaching Formula One status – come true. Al Samarrai describes him as a “serious and hard working” personality and believes a potential sponsor would benefit from his association with Dubai, as well as the potential for a return on investment by “developing an effective communications plan that can leverage his already well known profile in this region around the races in the United Kingdom.”
No title sponsor has been found for Jaffer so far, but Al Samarrai remains confident. “In the case of Zaamin, for example, we have reached an agreement that does not involve any revenue directly from him. When you are managing a public relations campaign for someone with as much potential as he has, it is about being genuine and believing in them.”
There are some restrictions, however, on Jaffer and Active’s sponsorship ambitions. “He can only have one tyre sponsor and that is the one that furnishes the tyres on his car. Zaamin drives in the Formula Ford league so having another car sponsor is not likely to work,” says Al Samarrai. These challenges are all part and parcel of racing on a circuit – and in a car – that is already tied to brands.
Whether Jaffer’s dream of reaching Formula One materializes remains to be seen, but for now he is positive. “When the sport does gain some more momentum [in the region] and the current financial climate improves, I think it may get a bit easier as big companies will want to get involved,” he says.

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