Southern Conference partners with JMI Sports

SPARTANBURG, S.C. – The Southern Conference has signed a six-year deal with JMI Sports, which will serve as the league’s official marketing rights company.

“We are ecstatic and honored to announce a new long-term partnership with JMI Sports to manage our corporate sponsorships,” SoCon Commissioner Jim Schaus said. “They are an innovative leader in the industry, with an impressive client base, that will expand our corporate relationship base for our conference and support the need for additional revenues. I want to thank JMI Sports President Tom Stultz for all his efforts in making this partnership come together. We excited about our future together.”

JMI Sports, a national leader in corporate partnerships, will handle the league’s marketing rights and solicit new corporate partners, spanning local, regional and national corporations. It will also provide business-to-consumer opportunities and business-to-business sales offer as well as handling trade deals.

“We are very excited to be represented the Southern Conference,” said Erik Judson, co-founder and CEO of JMI Sports. “The SoCon has great institutions with well-established excellence in academics and athletics that serve very loyal fan bases. On its own, the SoCon is a great addition to our portfolio of partners. However, when added to our growing list of conference relationships it becomes even more meaningful to the JMIS long-term strategic plan.”

A dedicated JMI Sports employee will sell and negotiate on the SoCon’s behalf. The league and JMI Sports will work together to sell current inventory and create additional inventory on the conference’s digital platforms, social media feeds and linear broadcasts and at special events and championships.

JMI Sports also represents the Ivy League, Mid-American Conference, Mountain West Conference and Patriot League as well as Clemson, Georgia, Kentucky, Notre Dame, Pitt, Columbia, Penn and Harvard.

 ABOUT JMI SPORTS

JMI Sports is a full-service collegiate marketing firm providing the highest quality management of athletics multimedia rights. JMI Sports works hand-in-hand with each university in the pursuit of their success, maximizing their economic potential through customized marketing and branding initiatives. JMI Sports manages an impressive list of signature partnerships including the University of Kentucky, Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center, Clemson University, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Pittsburgh, Harvard University, and joint-venture properties of the University of Georgia and Columbia University (with Learfield IMG College), as well as the University of Notre Dame (with Legends). JMI Sports also represents several high-profile conferences including the Ivy League, the Mid-American Conference, the Mountain West Conference, the Southern Conference and the Patriot League. JMI Sports also holds Total Campus Marketing rights in partnership with Kentucky and Clemson. Founded in 2006 by Erik Judson and technology entrepreneur John Moores, former owner of the San Diego Padres, JMI Sports is also a highly regarded project manager for the development of collegiate and professional sports facilities.

 ABOUT THE SOUTHERN CONFERENCE

The Southern Conference, in its 99th season of intercollegiate competition, is a national leader in emphasizing the development of the student-athlete and helping build lifelong leaders and role models. The conference has been on the forefront of innovation and originality in developing creative solutions to address issues facing intercollegiate athletics. From establishing the first conference basketball tournament (1921) to tackling the issues of freshman eligibility (1922) to developing women’s championships (1984) to becoming the first conference to install the 3-point goal in basketball (1980), the Southern Conference has been a pioneer. The Southern Conference is the nation’s fifth-oldest NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association.

This Article was provided by Phil Perry the Assistant Commissioner for Media Relations for the Southern Conference. For more info visit SoConSports.com