By Jonathan Rest

Sportfive, the international sports marketing agency, has begun the search for a sales team lead at Hamburg, one of its key soccer club contracts in Germany.

The role will be based in the the Volksparkstadion, home of the 2. Bundesliga club, with Sportfive looking to have someone in place by 1 April, 2021.

Sportfive is contracted to Hamburg until the end of the 2024-25 season, where its remit includes brokering shirt sponsorship, stadium naming rights pitchside advertising and hospitality deals.

It has been responsible for the club’s sponsorship and hospitality sales since 1998.

Main commercial partners include kit supplier Adidas, shirt sponsor Orthomol and sleeve partner Popp, while Audi, T Mobile and Konig Pilsner are among the exclusive partners.

Meanwhile, Sportfive has extended its contract with FC Heidenheim, also of the 2. Bundesliga, until 2028.

Sportfive has been the exclusive marketer of the club for seven years, and the existing deal was not due to expire until 2026.

Holger Sanwald, chief executive of Heidenheim, said: "Especially in the current Corona times, which are associated with many imponderables, the early extension with Sportfive as a sports rights marketer is great news for our club. Sportfive s a very important partner who supports us in a highly professional and extremely reliable manner with its expertise and many years of experience in sponsoring. This extension of the partnership offers us long-term growth potential. We are therefore looking forward to a continued successful cooperation"

Robert-Nicholas Hoene, executive director of rightsholder management at Sportfive, added: "With the premature extension of the partnership, 1. FC Heidenheim 1846 is sending out a strong signal and reinforcing our joint path that has been successful to date. We are proud that we have been able to accompany the sustainable development and establishment of the FCH in German professional football for so long and look forward to the continuation of this trusting cooperation with those responsible for the club in the coming years."

Heidenheim just missed out on a debut appearance in the Bundesliga, after losing to Werder Bremen on away goals in the promotion-relegation play-off this summer.

Sportcal