ICE-COLD OPPORTUNITIES
Become a winter sports partner!
Get involved with winter sports and enjoy the benefits of media attention, loyal customers and a strong network in the sports scene!
Become a partner> 20 million
Germans are interested in winter sports
1.2 million
cumulative followers for German winter sports athletes
1.5 million
active skiers in Germany
Snow ahead
The German Skiing Association (Deutsche Skiverband, DSV) doesn’t just represent sporting success: it is also actively committed to societal topics, such as sustainability and youth promotion. With around 800,000 members and 4,500 affiliated clubs, the DSV is one of the largest and most successful winter sports associations in the world. A sustainability strategy has been developed in conjunction with the German Snowboarding Association (Snowboard Verband Deutschland, SNBGER) to guarantee sporting and economic success, taking into account social and environmental aspects.
An “Advisory Board for the Environment and Sustainable Sports Development” was set up as far back as 1987, making it the first sports association in Germany to have an advisory board of this nature. The Skiing Safety (Sicherheit im Skisport) foundation has been the centre of excellence for implementing sustainability projects across all fields of action for years.
Three areas of responsibility have been defined: winter sports organisation, training sites and federal centres, plus winter sports events such as the World Cup and the World Championships. In these areas, various fields of action are then covered and supported via projects.
A winter full of tournaments
Given the international attention garnered by large events such as world championships and the Olympics, sponsors have the opportunity to position their brand on a global footing. The exciting competitions attract a broad audience both on site and via various media platforms. The Winter Olympics in Beijing, for instance, generated more than 2 billion TV viewers around the globe. The next Winter Olympics will be taking place in 2026, this time in Trentino in South Tyrol.
There are plenty of other winter sports events prior to that. As soon as December, the ski jumping starts in Titisee-Neustadt, followed by Oberstdorf (25 and 26 January) and Willingen (31 January to 2 February) in the new year. At the same time, Garmisch Partenkirchen turns into the home of Alpine skiing.
Almost 310 hours of winter sports were broadcast live, with a TV reach of around 777 million viewers, in 2023/24. A huge reach for your brand!
Winter sport are often about a swift descent – but the only way is up for your brand
We take off, you boost your brand – take advantage of winter sports to achieve your goals!
Ski jumping is the second most popular sport in Germany, with Alpine skiing also in the top 10. As a winter sports sponsor, you can enjoy diverse advertising spaces and maximum flexibility at the various events, be it on site or on the screen.
A partnership with the German Skiing Association (DSV) offers an exceptionally long-lasting, impactful platform. With the high half-life period of commitment, you can benefit from stable visibility in the long-term, embedding yourself within the winter sports scene.
Top presence and reach for your brand
Winter sports are a core component of public TV broadcasters’ programming: the transmissions of Alpine skiing from Garmisch-Partenkirchen regularly attract large numbers of viewers. The TV figures on ZDF for the men’s downhill races in 2023 were above 3 million viewers, on ORF 2 million, and the men’s super-G was also watched by large numbers.
In terms of ski jumping, the Skiing World Cups in Oberstdorf, Willingen and Titisee-Neustadt were also watched on TV by two to four million viewers.
Sector exclusivity & guaranteed visibility
The popularity of winter sports events means that you and your brand can achieve sizeable reach on bands during the competition and press conferences.
We guarantee that no competitors will be displayed in the environment booked by you. Thanks to a general cap on sponsor numbers, we guarantee your brand the attention it deserves.
New customers and brand loyalty
Winter sports and the various events give your brand an ideal platform for coming into contact with new customers and building a stronger connection. With interactive brand experiences such as events and exclusive meet-and-greets with athletes, you can boost customer loyalty and retention. Lots of sports fans are loyal customers who remain particularly faithful to a brand if it supports their interests and passions. At the same time, new, younger target groups are to be approached in the future: to attract Gen Z, winter sports will forge new paths going forward and depict itself in a younger, more digital fashion via storytelling.
The perfect place for a 360-degree campaign
Alongside a partnership with DSV, winter sports offer countless sponsorship opportunities that can be perfectly combined to form a 360-degree campaign. An athlete partnership makes it possible to address the target group in a specific manner via individual sportspeople and boost brand loyalty. Conversely, event partnerships ensure a strong presence at events and offer direct interaction with fans on site. Together, these options create a comprehensive, versatile campaign that makes brands visible within the entire winter sports environment and anchors them sustainably.
SUSTAINABILITY IN WINTER SPORTS
Strategies, organisations and collaboration
One aspect is crucial to ensure that the fascination of winter sports can unfold to its fullest: the cold. But cold weather is becoming increasingly rare due to the climate crisis. Rising temperatures make snow less likely – and you can’t have winter sports without snow.
The 2030 sustainability strategy is responsible for the development, implementation, monitoring and reporting of sustainability achievements. The organisation is borne by the presidia and executive committees of DSV, SNBGER and SIS.
The Sustainability Competence Centre at the SIS foundation plays a key role in this respect. This reports to sustainability boards and executive committees/presidia and provides stimuli. It also develops sustainability strategies, implements in-house sustainability projects and is responsible for providing specialist support to the stakeholder and advisory board dialogue.
Winter sports events, such as the FIS Skiing World Cup in Oberstdorf, aren’t just a major highlight for athletes, fans on-site and supporters in front of the TV: they’re also an opportunity and a challenge when it comes to sustainability. Despite partly divergent viewpoints and interests, stakeholders, organisations, institutions and politicians need to jointly find ways to develop events and sporting facilities so they are fit for the future. The sustainability strategy was drawn up to describe clear fields of action, underpin them with suitable indicators and allocate the measures in a transparent way.
The Klima.Schnee.Sport expert forum focuses on the consequences of climate change in the Alpine region and German Mittelgebirge, providing information on knowledge gaps and potential strategies for action. Solutions include:
innovation and diversification of offerings to safeguard winter sports and foster their evolution
Enhanced use of renewable energy
Intensification of sustainability, climate change and adaptation research linked to winter sports
Establishment of interdisciplinary partnerships, networks and systems
Sustainability-related challenges can only be overcome jointly. The German Skiing Association and Snowboard Germany seek constant dialogue with all stakeholders and partners. DSV and SNBGER aim to create sporting value for members, partners, employees and society, while striking a balance between sporting success and environmental and societal responsibility.
The AlpenKlimaGipfel summit took place for the first time on 27 and 28 June 2024. Academics, NGOs, businesses and key media in the Alpine space came together to debate changes, challenges and opportunities associated with climatic changes in the Alps. While reorientation and tangible action are required in all areas, better networking of different perspectives and disciplines is crucial.
Winter sports need to cope with minimal snow due to rising temperatures. Nevertheless, there are ways to obtain snow, such as through artificial snow or good snow management.
Technical snow production boosts planning security for ski areas, regions, tourism and, ultimately, winter sports participants themselves. It helps cushion short-term fluctuations in temperature and precipitation and ensure operations can continue. Beyond this, technically generated snow is better than natural snow for optimum grooming of the pistes due to the shape of its crystals – and entails less usage of piste machines.
When global skiing brands and DSV, in particular, find each other to gain a stronger foothold in the German-speaking market, this is a testament to our sport. Conversely, it’s also important from an international perspective that these brands become aware of our sports through SPORTFIVE’s brokerage.
Walter Vogel, Managing Director Marketing, DSV
I’m delighted by sponsors’ involvement with winter sports. When the individual brands’ values and products align with winter sports, I’m more than happy to help boost the visibility of this brand in Germany and, together, write a success story.
Viktoria Rebensburg, Olympic Medallist in Alpine Skiing
SPORTFIVE – your contact for a perfect partnership
The sports marketing agency SPORTFIVE and the German Skiing Association have been closely collaborating on marketing for various ski World Cup events since 2008 to find suitable sponsorship partners and jointly identify the best solutions. Thanks to this close connection, SPORTFIVE is familiar with all the challenges and frameworks to bear in mind when marketing the different events.
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“Ice Age”: learn more about how you can get involved as a partner in winter sports!
Want to learn more about a winter sports partnership, or are you interested in other opportunities? If so, leave us a message: we’ll get back to you shortly! Or email us directly on [email protected] or [email protected].
