The European Sponsorship Association is pleased to announce its judging panel for the 2020 ESA Awards, marking the home-straight until submissions close.
The most prestigious sponsorship prize in Europe, the 2020 ESA Awards will be presented at a gala dinner at London’s The Brewery on Wednesday 26 February 2020.
With just a week remaining until the window for awards submissions closes on Friday 11 October, ESA is thrilled to announce a diverse and well-regarded group of industry leaders will join the 2020 ESA Awards judging panel.
A total of 46 judges have been appointed from ten countries, marking the largest-ever intake for the ESA Awards. The group includes complementary skill-sets from all corners of the sponsorship industry, including CEOs, managing directors and vice presidents from the worlds of sport, media, arts, culture and entertainment.
Head to the 2020 ESA Awards website to see our full judging panel
With rights-holders, brands and agencies from across the entire industry spectrum, the range of our judging panel is a major reason for the continuing success of the ESA Awards.
Companies represented among the panel include CSM, the English National Ballet, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Live Nation, Marriott International, Mediacom, MKTG, Nielsen Sports, Publicis Group, SportsPro and the Swedish Hockey League.
The judges are divided into two groups, with 40 judges to oversee the ESA Awards, which is comprised of 25 categories covering every corner of the sponsorship landscape.
A separate group of six independent judges will adjudicate ESA Best of Europe, a prestigious invitation-only award that draws together national sponsorship winners from a host of countries across Europe.
ESA Chairman Andy Westlake, a member of the judging panel, says the 2020 selection of judges came from the strongest field in the history of the ESA Awards:
“The ESA Awards is becoming an ever-more important benchmark for the quality of work right across the European sponsorship industry. The winning campaigns help to inspire our members to raise the bar and the creativity and innovation of their work also helps to signal what best practice looks like in the industry. We’re excited to see what this year’s submissions will bring and the judges will have another tough but inspiring job on their hands!”
Jackie Fast, Chairperson of the ESA Awards Committee and Founder of Slingshot Sponsorship, anticipates the 2020 ESA Awards will be the biggest and best yet:
“The ESA Awards has been growing in scale each year, attracting the best campaigns across Europe, and this year is no different. New this year, we have focused on developing trends in sponsorship such as Purpose-led Partnerships and Gaming – there will be thought-provoking work that represents the changes our industry is experiencing and we are so glad to be recognising the diverse work they represent.
“We also have a star-studded guest list on the night – and a surprise forum to go behind the sponsorship scenes in the biggest brand in sponsorship. If you haven’t been involved in the ESA Awards before, now is the time!”
2020 ESA Awards judging panel – quick facts
10: Our judges come from ten countries and three continents – Belgium, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Russia, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States.
46: With a total of 40 judges on our judging panel and a further six leaders judging our ESA Best of Europe entries, 2020 will be our largest-ever pool of judges
85% of our judges are directorship-level seniority or above, representing many of the industry's key leaders.
For more information on individual judges, head to https://sponsorship.org/awards/esa-awards-judges/
Submissions for the 2020 ESA Awards are open until Friday 11 October. Head here for more information: https://sponsorship.org/awards/awards-home/
–ENDS–
For media queries, please contact:
Max Weber
Marketing Communications and Events Manager – ESA
Email: maxweber@sponsorship.org / Phone: +44 (0)20 8390 3311