Breeders’ Cup Announces Exclusive Corporate Sponsorship Sales Partnership With JMI Sports

Prominent Media Rights and Venue Development Company Will Align with Breeders’ Cup to Develop New Sponsorships

LEXINGTON, Ky. (April 22, 2021) — Breeders’ Cup has entered a partnership with media rights and venue development company JMI Sports as the exclusive agency to support corporate partnership sales. A leading sponsorship company with offices around the country, including in future Breeders’ Cup host locations San Diego and Lexington, JMI Sports will drive new revenue through strategic sponsorship agreements for the Breeders’ Cup.

Breeders’ Cup offers custom and comprehensive sponsorship packages that include media opportunities and exposure in the Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series and World Championships broadcasts on NBC Sports, exclusive marketing partnerships, race entitlements, naming rights of events and experiences, dedicated access to Breeders’ Cup affluent participants and events throughout the year, creative brand integration across various platforms and more.

“We’re excited to retain JMI Sports, a national partnership sales agency with a sterling reputation for delivering creative and dynamic sponsorship agreements for its clients,” said Drew Fleming, President and CEO of Breeders’ Cup. “JMI Sports understands the special value our property and audience bring to brand partnerships and we look forward to a productive, longstanding relationship with their team.”

Since JMI Sports was founded in 2006 by Erik Judson and John Moores, a technology entrepreneur, partner in Breeders’ Cup-winning Merriebelle Stable, and former owner of the San Diego Padres, the company has served as the sales agent for numerous national sports brands and properties seeking to enhance their corporate sponsorship programs.

“We are honored and excited to represent the Breeders’ Cup” said Erik Judson, CEO of JMI Sports. “Our ownership is invested in horse racing and we know firsthand that the Breeders’ Cup is the pinnacle of horse racing. We have a great understanding of, and appreciation for, the significance of the thoroughbred industry and the important leadership role the Breeders’ Cup plays. Our partnership with the Breeders’ Cup aligns perfectly with our strategy of working with signature sports properties and we are excited to collaborate with them and leverage our relationships to bring new, innovative partnerships to further advance the sport.”

JMI Sports has achieved early success in working with the Breeders’ Cup by bringing Lexus on board as the “Official Luxury Vehicle and Transportation Partner of the Breeders’ Cup” for the 2020 World Championships at Keeneland Race Course. Through this partnership, Lexus provided 100 luxury vehicles for owners, trainers, breeders and partners to use during the event. They also sponsored the Jockey Cam, a helmet-mounted camera that provided a live, first-person experience for up to two jockeys per race.

The media rights and venue development company has extensive experience in the collegiate and professional sports industry where they have negotiated hundreds of millions of dollars in sponsorship agreements for clients such as University of Kentucky, University of Notre Dame, University of Pennsylvania, University of Georgia, Clemson University, and the Ivy League. JMI Sports is also a highly regarded project manager for the development of collegiate and professional sports facilities.

The Breeders’ Cup’s relationship will be managed day-to-day by current JMI Sports staff located in Lexington and will be supported by high-level national sales members based in New York City, San Diego, and the San Francisco Bay Area. JMI Sports will also leverage its senior leadership and current collegiate property leaders and sales staff across the country to drive sales revenue for the Breeders’ Cup.

ABOUT BREEDERS’ CUP
The Breeders’ Cup administers the Breeders’ Cup World Championships, Thoroughbred horse racing’s year-end Championships, as well as the Breeders’ Cup Challenge qualifying series, which provides automatic starting positions into the Championships races. The Breeders’ Cup is also a founding member of the Thoroughbred Safety Coalition, an organization composed of industry leaders committed to advancing safety measures in Thoroughbred racing and improving the well-being of equine and human athletes. The 2021 Breeders’ Cup World Championships, consisting of 14 Championship races, is scheduled to be held on November 5-6 at Del Mar racetrack in Del Mar, California. The event will be televised live by the NBC Sports Group. Breeders’ Cup press releases appear on the Breeders’ Cup website, breederscup.com. You can also follow the Breeders’ Cup on social media.

ABOUT JMI SPORTS
JMI Sports is a leading media rights and venue development company providing management of collegiate multimedia rights, sponsorship sales agency representation, and highly regarded project management expertise to the development of collegiate and professional sports facilities. The company serves to maximize each client’s economic potential through customized initiatives, from marketing and branding solutions to facility design strategies that bring each client’s vision to fruition. JMI Sports manages an impressive list of signature collegiate multimedia rights partnerships including, the University of Kentucky, Clemson University, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Pittsburgh, Harvard University, and joint-venture properties of the University of Georgia and Columbia University (with Learfield IMG College), and University of Notre Dame (with Legends). JMI Sports also represents several high-profile conferences including the Ivy League, the Mid-American Conference, the Mountain West Conference, the Southern Conference and the Patriot League. Additionally, JMI Sports serves as third-party sales representation for premier venues and events including the Breeders’ Cup, Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center, the Penn Relays. The company’s facility development team is currently collaborating with Legends on the new Aztec Stadium and Mission Valley development for San Diego State University in San Diego, CA. Celebrating its 15th anniversary in 2021, JMI Sports was founded by CEO Erik Judson and technology entrepreneur John Moores, former owner of the San Diego Padres.