HOW MUCH DO I NEED IN CASH SPONSORSHIP: A RULE OF THUMB

I often get asked by up and coming race directors, how much do I really need in cash sponsorship for my race to be financially successful? Of course, without truly analyzing their event and their budget, I have no real way of knowing. However, over the years I have come up with my own rule of thumb that seems to work most of the time but of course not all of the time. Again, every race is different and every race director manages differently so this rule of thumb doesn’t always apply.

If your cash sponsorship is equal to or greater than your gross entry fees, you should be doing really well. For example, if you have a 10K race with 3,000 runners each paying an entry fee of $30, you would have $90,000 in entry fee revenue. To secure an equal amount in cash sponsorship would mean you will have a very healthy event.

Another rule of thumb: a race that does not spend extravagantly (prize money, appearance fees, excessive management fees) or get charged unreasonable costs, should be able to at least break even just with its entry fee revenue. It is when you want to cover these other optional expenses that you need cash sponsors or at least budget relieving sponsors or your race could actually lose money.

Additionally, if your goal is to raise money from your race for a local charity (above and beyond participant fundraising), it is going to be tough to realize net profits without cash sponsors helping to cover some of the costs of producing your race.

So, in essence and if budgeted properly, it can be said that any cash sponsorship should cover management fees along with any extraordinary expenses with the balance being what could be realized for the beneficiary.