Marketing success for Baden Racing: Title sponsors secured for all Group and Listed races at Great Festival Week at Iffezheim
Strong brands support prestigious Group races
Group races have a special status in horse racing due to their prize money, their importance for breeding and their international reputation. In sporting terms, the level is comparable to European football competitions. No other race course operator in Germany offers as many Group competitions as Baden Racing – 12 across the entire season, six of these during Great Festival Week at Iffezheim/Baden-Baden from 27 August to 4 September.
“As a result, we offer the most attractive opportunities for sponsors in horse racing and are very successful in securing partners for our highlights”, says Baden Racing Managing Director Dr Benedict Forndran.
The agreement with Swiss watch manufacturer Longines as Title Sponsor of the Grosser Preis von Baden (Great Prize of Baden) on 4 September was announced recently. Now Baden Racing has also secured American Express, one of the leading providers of travel and financial services, as Title Sponsor of the Zukunftsrennen (Future Race) on 30 August.
“This means we now have a title sponsor for all Group and Listed races – an achievement we can be proud of”, says Dr. Benedict Forndran. "The presence of many well-known brands and companies shows the great appreciation that the races at Iffezheim enjoy. Companies can align themselves with a traditional sports event and benefit from the diverse audience demographics at our meetings."
His colleague Richard Schmitz emphasises “the healthy mix of existing and new sponsors that have a strong association with the Iffezheim race track – such as Mercedes-Benz.” The car company is official automobile partner of all meetings and sponsors the Mercedes-Benz Diana Trial – a newly introduced Group III race for fillies and mares (aged three years and older), which will be run on 3 September. The long-term collaboration with Mercedes reaches back eight decades.
Other Group races of the Great Festival Week have long-standing partners, such as the Preis der Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe (Price of the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe, 27 August), which has run under this name since 1991; the Darley Oettingen-Rennen (Darley Oettingen Race, 1 September) since 1999 and the bestwetten.de Goldene Peitsche (bestwetten.de Golden Whip, 28 August) since 2006.
All Listed Races also with a title sponsor
The races with the highest sporting value after the Group races (in categories I to III) are the Listed races. Great Festival Week has four Listed races – all associated with a Title Sponsor. Germany's oldest private bank (founded in 1590) will support the Berenberg Bank Cup – a new race for three year old fillies over 2000 metres on 4 September. By contrast, the Preis des Casino Baden-Baden (Prize of Casino Baden-Baden, 28 August) has existed since 1966 and the Kronimus Rennen (Kronimus Race, 1 September) since 1995. The famous Irish stud Coolmore sponsors the Baden-Baden Cup (4 September) since 2001. There is also a great tradition behind the two highly-rated races sponsored by the Baden-Baden Auction Company (BBAG). The Preis der Jährlingsauktion (Prize of the yearling auction) has run since 1996, the BBAG Auktionsrennen (BBAG auction race) since 1997.
About Baden Racing
Baden Racing took over the Iffezheim race course in 2010 and has gone on to become the largest organiser of flat racing in Germany, with three meetings and 14 days of racing. Baden Racing is a joint venture between the international sports marketing agency, Infront Sports & Media AG (Zug, Suisse), DSV Deutscher Sportverlag HmbH (Cologne), Stars and Friends GmbH (Bad Harzburg) and weiss media GmbH (Meerbusch).
For more information please contact:
Jörg Polzer / Nike Möhle
Corporate Communications
Infront Sports & Media AG
Tel. +41-41-723 15 15
Fax +41-41-723 15 16
press@infrontsports.com
www.infrontsports.com
Peter Mühlfeit
Press Officer Baden Racing
+49 1761 7229 315
presse@baden-racing.com
www.baden-racing.com
