How Brands Turn Global Sporting Moments into Enduring Connections
Sparks Marketing
The Milano Cortina Olympics reminded the world something that gets forgotten between the winter and summer Games: we still want to be there when it really matters. In a stadium. In a fan zone. In a crowd of strangers holding their breath at the same moment.
For brands, showing up at these events isn't enough. How to become part of a moment that already belongs to fans, and how to make that feeling last long after the closing ceremonies, is what's relevant.
It's a question Jamie Barlow knows well. As SVP of Creative Technology at Sparks, Barlow has spent his career at the intersection of live experience, fan culture, and emerging technology working on activations ranging from stadium installations to global sports sponsorships. He recently shared his perspective in an op-ed for SportCal, one of the sports industry's most authoritative and widely read intelligence platforms read by executives and decision-makers shaping how brands invest in sports.
The piece shows why the most effective brand activations chase long-term relationships over visibility. The brands that get remembered are the ones that make fans feel seen, not sold to. Technology plays a role, but only when it serves the fan experience and doesn't distract from it.
Jamie Barlow, SVP of Creative Technology, Sparks
The best activations start with a simple question: how do the fans already participate, and how can we become a relevant part of it?
It's a framework that shapes how Sparks approaches every sports partnership, from understanding fan rituals to designing environments that feel intrinsec to fan culture and not imposed. With LA28 on the horizon, and the FIFA World Cup coming to North American soil in 2026, the opportunities for brands to build lasting equity through live sport have never been greater.
