Feature: Playing the long game
Many of the sports brand partnerships we’re accustomed to seeing are built on the work Michael Cheney (MAcc ’86) did for Coca-Cola and other companies. Cheney helped shift sports marketing from outfield signage and jersey patches to brand partnerships that let brands tap into fans’ passion for their teams and build excitement.
Today, Cheney—whose career branched from accounting to sports marketing to tech startups—serves as founding president of the UGA Alumni Sports Industry Council.
The council is celebrating eight years of connecting sport management students in the Mary Frances Early College of Education with leaders at professional sports leagues, team organizations, and professionals who work behind the scenes in the sports business.
“Students in sport management come in, and they say, ‘I want to work in sports,’” Cheney said. “Well, what does that mean? Do you want to sell tickets? Do you want to work for a governing body? Do you want to work for Coca-Cola and do sports marketing? Do you want to work for an agency? From the beginning, we wanted to inform students of the opportunities.”