Spotlight’s weekly collection of relevant press, tweets, and blogs shaping the world of corporate ticketing. The evolution of Corporate America’s involvement in sports is leading towards more responsibility and better analytics. Please read on for more on: sports sponsorship, sports business, ticket management, corporate accountability, and The Spotlight Ticket Management Solution.

The ATP breathes a sigh of relief after replacing Mercedes as a title sponsor with Corona Extra- a brand of Groupo Modelo. The article offers some hope for sponsors as the President of the ATP speaks of trying to find a sponsor during the great recession. According to the ATP, just getting meetings with sponsors was extremely difficult let alone finding a new sponsor for a tour that drew 4.4 million fans in 2009. the 4.4 million number is impressive however sponsorship is about activation and branding, will be interesting to see what Corona thinks of this 5 1/2 year deal.

Bridgestone continues to dive into sports sponsorships by adding the naming rights to the Nashville arena to their current holdings. Phil Pacsi, Vice President of Marketing for Bridgestone, has already been raked over the coals of public opinion during the Bridgestone/Firestone PGA event by a number of publications though that hasn’t stopped Bridgestone from seeing the benefit of these deals. Perhaps we will one day see ROI numbers from the firm.

• The Sommet Center could become Bridgestone Arena as early as next week, officials said at today’s announcement that Bridgestone Americas Inc. and the Nashville Predators hockey team have reached a naming rights agreement for the downtown arena. Local sports business experts said the deal makes sense for both the team, whose financial strength has been called into question as of late, and Nashville-based Bridgestone Americas, which has been aggressively building brand recognition through sports sponsorships. Read More…

In somewhat frightening news for a major event, the FIFA World Cup admits that, if the tournament were to start tomorrow, they would not be ready. South Africa has been saddled with criticism of being being in preparation for over 3 years now and has not found a way to shake that sentiment.

• FIFA secretary general Jerome Valcke admits South Africa would not be ready to host the World Cup if the tournament started tomorrow.Valcke is happy with progress in the construction of stadiums and training camps but there have been concerns this week over England’s camp at Royal Bafokeng Sports Campus near Rustenburg, while the Soccer City venue in Johannesburg is not completed. Read More…

The Bank of Ireland has dropped Padraig Harrington from their sponsorship portfolio citing cost cutting as the reason. The true reason: the money they were paying to be associated with Padraig was not coming back in new business.

• BANK OF Ireland has deemed its sponsorship of Irish golfer Pádraig Harrington to be out of bounds due to the credit crunch. The Irish Times has learned that the bank, which is now 15.7 per cent directly owned by Irish taxpayers, has decided not to renew its sponsorship of Harrington when its three-year deal expires at the end of May. The decision to pass on its option to renew the sponsorship is one of a series of cost-cutting measures being implemented by the loss-making bank, as it seeks to stabilise its financial position. Reports at the time the deal was announced in May 2007 suggested that it was worth €750,000 over the three years plus performance bonuses. But informed industry sources yesterday estimated that the figure was as high as €400,000 a year, including bonuses. Read More…

The Toronto Star writes about the success of Olympic sponsorships during the Vancouver games. Though most of the piece discusses the wins experienced by CTV and other carriers, there are no true numbers on ROI for the products cited.

• After all the hand-wringing in advance of the Olympics about corporate sponsorships, the Winter Games in Vancouver are turning out to be golden – and not just for Canada’s athletes. Whether it’s record TV audiences, shortages of Olympic mittens, or an online torch relay contest that attracted hundreds of thousands of entrants, the Games have clearly been a winner for the companies that paid hundreds of millions to be involved. Read More…

The USA vs. Canada Olympic Gold Medal Hockey Final quickly became the hottest ticket in Canadian sports history fetching prices usually reserved for Super Bowls. The game was over 25% more expensive than last year’s Stanley Cup Final clinching game.

• If you’re looking for the hottest ticket in Canadian sports history, look no further than Sunday’s gold-medal men’s hockey matchup. Canadians, anticipating that their team will play for the gold, are paying top dollar to get into the arena for the game. “This is our 25th year of business and I’ve never seen anything like this in Canada,” said Mario Livich, CEO of Showtime Tickets, which is located right across from the GM Place arena. Livich said that the cheapest seats are going for $3,000. Read More…

Relevant Sports Business & Sports Ticket Management Tweets Of The Week:

• dkaplanSBJ ATP close to major sponsorship with Corona beer; replaces Mercedes as men’s tennis’ top backer; http://su.pr/2lKARJ
• SBJSBD Omega president says Olympics Helped the company navigate the recession. http://su.pr/3wZRaz #olybiz
• SBJSBD Stands roughly half full yesterday for NASCAR Sprint Cup race in California. http://su.pr/4o9HJE – Uh Oh
• darrenrovell1 Predators arena being sponsored by Bridgestone. If company is smart, they’d put rubber tire around entire building
• dkaplanSBJ Checketts: bid for Rams still active; key investor is Jerry Ford of Dallas- would be controlling parter:http://su.pr/32yfNi
• SBJSBD Coke has been Active In Vancouver, But already is Thinking About the London Games. http://su.pr/2n7vcE
• SBJSBD Turner network to meet with NBA officials to discuss potential changes in the league’s annual dunk contest. http://su.pr/1kSk5v
• darrenrovell1 My list of the 25 Most Marketable Winter Olympians http://su.pr/Au38GN
• SI_PeterKing hearing Arizona’s dropping out of the bidding for 2014 #Super #Bowl. That means the leader in clubhouse is the Meadowlands.
• SI_PeterKing I’m hearing Arizona’s dropping out of the bidding for the 2014 Super Bowl. The leader in clubhouse is the Meadowlands
• darrenrovell1 Gatorade: we no longer see a role for Tiger in our marketing efforts and have ended our relationship
• FanSnap: Avg. listing price for gold medal usa-canada game is now $4,313.
• darrenrovell1 Tag Heuer CEO: Tiger ads up in China because “your success is measured by your # of mistresses.” http://su.pr/5HOB1a