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September 29, 2020
Virtual

Nomination Information

Selection Process:

  • Once the nominees for the 2020 Sports Business Awards have been selected by a panel of editors, writers and researchers from Sports Business Journal and Sports Business Daily in March, the selection process then opens up to include a panel of sports industry executives who will serve as category judges. The judge committees, consisting of a mix of industry executives and staff members representing Sports Business Journal/Daily, will evaluate the nominees and determine the category winners by a private vote. The list of judges for each category will be announced in Sports Business Journal following the awards ceremony. The categories for Sports Executive of the Year and Athletic Director of the Year will continue to be judged by an internal panel of editors, writers and researchers from Sports Business Journal and Sports Business Daily.

Eligibility:

  • The 2020 awards will recognize achievements from March 1, 2019, to February 28, 2020. Entries should contain information relating only to this time frame. While recognizing the global marketplace in sports, emphasis will be placed on those activities and events that occur in the United States and North America.

For 2020:

  • Each entry may include a one-page, single-sided Executive Summary highlighting the contents of the full entry. The Executive Summary will not count toward the limit of six content pages and five image pages.
  • It is no longer a requirement to submit an entry video for any category. However, it is still permissible to submit entry videos as long as the total length of all videos submitted does not exceed three minutes. Preferred formats include .mov or .wmv

Entry Procedures 

All entries must be submitted via the online entry form. Each entry should contain basic general information (submitted on the entry form), along with information related to the category-specific questions (submitted in your entry materials).

 

Basic general information to be included on the entry form:

  • Category entered
  • Name of company, agency, team or league (as it would appear on the award)
  • Top three reasons why the entrant should be nominated. These answers should only include information pertinent to the eligibility period. Answers are limited to 500 characters (including spaces) per reason.
  • Key sports contact, including name, title, phone and email address (the top sports executive, the person most likely to accept the award should the entrant win)
  • Person submitting the entry, including name, title, company, phone and email address (the person who can answer any questions about the entry)
  • Three external references for the entrant (executives not affiliated with the entrant), including name, title, company, phone and email address, who can speak about the entrant if the committee wants additional clarification

Additional basic information to be included in your entry materials as attachments:

  • Budget, growth and other statistical data. (All budget information remains confidential and will not be used for publication purposes).

Please be as specific as you can in your responses. Please focus your answers on the specific question – submissions that don’t answer the actual question or provide detailed specifics will not be closely considered. 

Category-specific questions:

  • In your entry materials, submit statistical data, descriptions and examples that address the criteria and questions listed for the category being entered.

 

Attaching Entry Materials:

  • Once you click “Submit” on the entry form with the basic general information, you will receive a confirmation with a link to our FTP site. At this point, you can attach materials for the entry. This would include a document detailing answers to the category-specific questions. Additional supporting materials could include Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, Excel spreadsheets, collateral materials, video files, etc.
  • Please be succinct in your answers, providing material preferably in four (4) to six (6) pages, but no more than six (6) total content pages from all file formats.
  • You may submit up to five (5) additional pages of photos or images with up to a one-line caption per photo. Each page can contain more than one photo/image.
  • For entrants who need to make minor addendums to their entry (to cover the period from January 17 through February 28), please contact Tracey Allsbrook at 704-973-1566 to receive approval and to discuss the process.
  • Material should be provided separately for each category entered.
  • Once the nominees are chosen, material originally submitted during the entry phase will be provided to the external judges for the second phase of judging.

 

Submitting Entry Materials:

  • Sports Business Journal/Daily FTP site – material must be submitted via an FTP site. You may submit material up to 1 GB through Sports Business Journal/Daily's FTP site.
  • Go to http://sbjuploads.com. Fill in your contact information and then select "Sports Business Awards." At the next screen, select the appropriate category. On the third screen, follow the instructions on the screen – "Add Files", "Upload" files and "Send my files."
  • Other FTP Options – You may also choose to submit material through a third-party file transfer site, such as We Transfer, Hightail etc., or through your company's FTP site or other transfer protocols. The email notification should be sent to Tracey Allsbrook at tallsbrook@sportsbusinessjournal.com

 

Deadline:

  • All entries and supporting materials must be submitted by January 17, 2020.
  • Nominees who would like to submit minor addendums (to cover the period from January 17 through February 28) for the external judges must receive prior approval from Sports Business Journal/Daily. Please contact Tracey Allsbrook at 704-973-1566 to discuss this. NOMINEES WILL NOT BE ABLE TO SUBMIT A NEW ENTRY.

Entry Fees:

  • There is no fee to submit an entry.

 

Video Materials (for use at the awards ceremony):

  • Entrants selected as nominees will need to submit video highlights to be used during the awards ceremony, which may be streamed live. A request for the video, with format specifications, will be made at the time entrants are informed of their status as nominees. The deadline for the video materials is Friday, April 3, 2020.

Timeline:

  • Deadline to submit an entry – Friday, January 17, 2020 at 11:59PM EST
  • Nominees announced – Monday, March 16, 2020
  • Winners announced/Awards presentation – Wednesday, May 20, 2020, at the New York Marriott Marquis at Times Square

 

Awards Presentation:

  • Wednesday, May 20, 2020, at the New York Marriott Marquis at Times Square


Categories for this year's Sports Business Awards:

Sports Team of the Year

Sports League of the Year

Sports Event of the Year

Sports Executive of the Year

Athletic Director of the Year

Best in Sports Media

Best in Digital and Interactive Media

Best in Sports Social Media

Best in Mobile Fan Experience

Best Talent Representation of the Year

Best in Corporate Consulting, Marketing and Client Services

Best in Property Consulting, Sales and Client Services

Best in Sports Event and Experiential Marketing

Sports Sponsor of the Year

Sports Facility of the Year

Best in Sports Technology

Sports Breakthrough of the Year