The Top 5 Beyond the Match Articles from 2025
Published on
by Dominic Mills
With 2025 drawing to a close, we here at Beyond The Match, wanted to take stock, reflect on the past year and celebrate those that matter most to us - our readers.
In that spirit, we’ve trawled through our archives and analysed the data to find our reader’s top five most popular pieces from 2025. Have you read them all? Scroll through and test yourself.
From all the team at Beyond The Match, thank you for reading in 2025!
In this Insight:
What Happened Beyond The Match in 2025?
Like every year in sport, 2025 was a year like no other. In golf, Rory McIlroy finally completed his career grand slam by winning The Masters, in Basketball an A’ja Wilson inspired Las Vegas Aces earned a historic WNBA title, Lando Norris won his first ever Formula 1 Championship, and a special mention goes out to England (no author bias here whatsoever) who had a historic year as both the women’s national teams in football and rugby brought home glory with UEFA Women’s Euros and Women’s Rugby World Cup successes.
Whilst that’s just a snapshot of some of the sporting highlights that 2025 has delivered, if you want an in-depth review of the year, check out this article written in conjunction with SPORTFIVE’s data team. Here, we’re going to focus on what the Beyond The Match team knows best, sport business.
If you’re new here, Beyond The Match is the SPORTFIVE magazine that aims to give readers an insight into the business side of sport through the lens of industry articles, in-depth research and whitepapers, and success stories.
In 2025, we’ve taken our content to new heights as we’ve explored 25 different topics in sports business, ranging from internationalisation and athlete management to sponsorships and hospitality, covering 13 different sports along the way.
To celebrate our fantastic readers who have kept-up with us throughout the year, we’re taking a closer look at their most read stories from 2025.
2025 at Beyond The Match in Numbers
#5 Sponsorships in Cycling - How The Biggest Brands Succeed
Professional cycling has one of the most unique sponsorship landscapes in all of sport. Unlike most sports, the sport hasn’t just grown because of its sponsors, it was actually founded by them.
In this article, we explore the more than 125-year history of sponsors in cycling and seeks to understand what methods sponsors are using in their partnerships with professional cycling teams and how it is still reaping rewards today.
#4 An Investment That Adds Value: Why Sponsorships In Football Work
Football is the world’s most popular sport, followed by an estimated 3.5 billion fans around the globe, according to Statista. With such a mammoth audience - the largest of any sport - it seems an obvious place for brands to want to be part of.
But what do sponsorships in football actually give brands? That’s the question that Beyond The Match’s Mara Kottke seeks to answer in this article - taking particular focus on the German Bundesliga.
#3 How Sports Sponsorship Gives Brands A Breath Of Fresh Air
Keeping on the theme of sponsorships, the third most read article on Beyond The Match in 2025 takes a deep dive into how sport can be a critical tool for businesses looking to undergo a brand relaunch.
From analysing key successes from the likes of Red Bull, Puma, and Deutsche Telekom to breaking down the benefits of sports sponsorships, this article is a great place to start for any team looking to refresh their brand.
#2 The Commercialisation of Women’s Football
Women’s football is undergoing an unparalleled period of growth. Recent years have seen the sport completely transformed; tens of thousands of fans regularly pack stadiums, club and international matches are consistently broadcasted to both paying and free-to-air platforms, female footballers are becoming global superstars and commercialisation is growing in all areas of the game.
In this article, Leading experts in sport management and marketing from Griffith University, Associate Professor Popi Sotiriadou and Chrystal Coughlan explore the latter of these points, offering insights into the opportunities and obstacles of the growing commercialisation of the women’s game.
#1 The Rise of Women’s Football - A Movement, Not a Moment
2025 really has been the year of women’s football, both on the pitch and in our reader’s feeds. Coming in at top spot for this year’s most popular Beyond The Match read is ‘The Rise of Women’s Football: A Movement, Not a Moment’ whitepaper.
This in-depth study seeks to map out the growth, change and opportunity in women’s football by unpacking its multifaceted commercial landscape. Composed of the results from surveying 12,000 respondents, 1,600 sponsoring brands and analysing six leading markets and their leagues, this paper was made to be the definitive report on women’s football - and it delivered!
So there we have it, the top five Beyond The Match reads for 2025. We can safely say that sponsorships and women’s football were both key topics for our readers this year, but with more than 75 articles, success stories and whitepapers posted throughout the year, there’s plenty more for you to explore on Beyond The Match.
And if you want to have content like this delivered straight to your inbox on a monthly basis, you can subscribe to the Beyond The Match newsletter and receive a roundup of the best articles, success stories and happenings from around sport and sport business every month.
Frequently Asked Questions
SPORTFIVE is a global sports marketing agency that specialises in sports rights, marketing, and entertainment. We work with sports organisations, clubs, and brands to create and optimise commercial opportunities in the sports industry. SPORTFIVE is involved in various aspects of sports business, including the sale of broadcasting rights, sponsorship and partnership management, stadium naming rights, and other marketing initiatives.
SPORTFIVE creates innovative, engaging solutions that are worthy of the incredible sports, athletes and partners we work with, and the passionate fans who follow them. Campaigns are built collaboratively, based on trust and transparency, and enabled by a deep understanding of the industry, the agency’s global reach, digital intelligence and creative courage.
The result is gamechanging sports partnerships that redefine standards in the sports and entertainment space.
SPORTFIVE believes in the power of five - bringing brands, rights holders, media platforms, fans and ‘us’ together through sport.
SPORTFIVE is a global sports marketing agency that specialises in various aspects of the sports and entertainment industry. The agency works with sports organisations, teams, and brands to optimise commercial opportunities.
One of SPORTFIVE's key areas of focus is the sale and management of sports media rights, including broadcasting and digital distribution deals. They negotiate and facilitate partnerships, sponsorships, and naming rights for sports entities, helping them enhance their brand value and revenue streams.
Additionally, SPORTFIVE provides expertise in marketing strategies, assisting clients in building strong connections with their target audiences. Their comprehensive approach spans across the sports business landscape, from media rights to sponsorship management, contributing to the overall growth and success of their clients in the dynamic world of sports marketing.
SPORTFIVE operates across a broad spectrum of sports, engaging with diverse disciplines and events globally.
The agency has a comprehensive portfolio that spans popular team sports, individual sports, and major sporting events. They are involved in football (soccer), which is a significant focus given its global popularity.
Additionally, SPORTFIVE is active in sports such as basketball, tennis, golf, motorsports, american football, multi-sport events such as the Olympic and the world of esports & gaming.
The agency's reach extends to various regions and markets, allowing them to navigate the unique landscapes of different sports industries.
Whether facilitating media rights deals, managing sponsorships, or developing marketing strategies, SPORTFIVE's involvement spans across a wide array of sports, showcasing their versatility and ability to cater to the commercial needs of sports organisations and brands in the ever-evolving sports market.
SPORTFIVE offers a comprehensive range of services that go beyond standard sponsorship deals. The agency provides full sponsorship consulting, activation, and sales, ensuring that brands receive strategic, tailored advice at every stage of the sponsorship process. The global presence and data-driven approach makes SPORTFIVE the preferred partner for brands looking to make impactful investments in sports.
Learn more about the service offering here
SPORTFIVE combines global reach, data-driven insights and a deep understanding of sports markets to deliver tailored sponsorship solutions that drive commercial success for rightsholders.
SPORTFIVE works for a diverse range of brands, from global consumer brands to niche players looking to enter the sports market. The clients come from a variety of industries, including automotive, consumer goods, tech, and more. No matter your size or industry, SPORTFIVE can tailor a sponsorship solution to meet your specific needs.
SPORTFIVE implements a creative and results-oriented approach to sponsorship activation, focusing on delivering meaningful experiences that connect brands with their audience. By leveraging digital platforms, live events, and fan engagement tactics, the agency ensures that sponsorships go beyond visibility to deliver true value and engagement.
If you are interested in a career at SPORTFIVE and help brands to grow through sport sponsorship and marketing, simply check out the careers page. The SPORTFIVE team will be happy to discuss opportunities that match your experience and vision.
