In Finland, they don’t know how to sell sports

The Manager book comes out this week.

Harri Halmetta surprise. According to him, sports sponsorship sales in Norway and Sweden are double or even triple compared to Finland.

– Why? Halme asks.

– Of course, Sweden is twice the size and Norway is sports crazy and rich, but they are not enough to explain. You don’t know how to sell sports in Finland.

Halme is a well-known and recognized sports manager. He speaks on the subject with decades of experience

– In every junior team of every club of nearly ten thousand, the sale of sports is considered. There are several thousand individuals in 50 species who struggle with sales, Halme knows.

– Education, skills and needs do not match very well. Colleges and universities of applied sciences do not train people in the field.

At the paint booth

A book will be published from Halme this week Manager. In addition to the biography, there is a real dose of thoughts and lessons from sports marketing.

– One of the biggest reasons for writing the book was that I wanted to share my experiences from 35 years, but I really don’t think I’m a guru in the field, Halme says.

– In the book, I give concrete marketing tips for athletes, teams and their families, for example, who need resources and a boost for their activities. I did it by recording examples of filling the stands of the events and different cooperation patterns of the athletes.

Halme, 55, states that he is “already a bit on the cooling cycle” as a manager. On the other hand, he is considered a hard-ass and a big power user in Finnish sports, as Iltalehti described in its extensive story in the spring.

– I’m not a wonderful jefe. I have always been involved in sports matters, learned lessons and met people, Halme acknowledges.

– Improving the position of the individual and developing top Finnish sports have been my drivers – but of course if you want to get something done, you also have to put up with being beaten in front of the goal.

ttn-50