Sports licensed products retail sales in the U.S. and Canada rose 7% in 2003 over 2002 to reach $12.1 billion. The increase since 2001 has been an impressive 15%. That's just some of the information found in SGMA International's Sports Licensing White Paper (2004 edition) – which features reports on merchandise sales from the NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL, Collegiate Licensing Company and NASCAR. In addition, this publication features a Q&A interview with Martin Brochstein, executive editor of The Licensing Letter.

The last two years show sales growth in products from the four major professional leagues (NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL), NASCAR and collegiate licensing. And, in 2004, the outlook for all major sports licensors is for sales to continue to rise.

Some of the reasons for this increased success of sports licensed products are listed below.

  • New business models. Many licensors have substantially restructured their licensee rosters, eliminating hundreds of former suppliers.
  • Favorable fashion trends. Team sports looks have come back into style. Hip-hop artists have popularized authentic replica jerseys.
  • Global Sales. Sales outside the U.S. represented less than 10% of total sales in 1998, but rose to 20% in 2003.
  • Television exposure. In 2003, both the NBA and NFL launched 24-hour cable and satellite networks, which showcase their respective sports. NASCAR's TV coverage was the number one weekend sports property from February through September. Early in 2004, the NHL expanded its collection of retro apparel. And, on the collegiate front, “rivalry merchandise” gained attention in the media.
  • Video games. Video games bring excitement and authenticity to major league sports. Each year young fans seem willing to purchase the current game to get the latest version with up-to-date team rosters.

This year's Sports Licensing White Paper also contains a number of charts which document the status of the sports licensed products industry. Some of them include:

    1. U.S. Retail Sales of Sports Licensed Products (in billions of U.S. dollars) – 1992-2003

    2. Avid Sports Fans – Percentage of those age 12 and older who describe themselves as avid fans of any sport.

    3. Retail Sales of All Licensed Products, U.S. and Canada (in billions of U.S. dollars).

    4. Top Selling Categories for Sports Licensed Products – Categories include apparel, accessories, sporting goods, publishing, gifts/novelties, video games/software, toys/games.

    5. Retail Sales of Major Sports Licensors, U.S. and Canada (sales in millions of U.S. dollars) – This features recent sales for MLB, NBA, NFL, NHL, NASCAR, and all colleges/universities.

    6. Reasons for Buying Sports Licensed Apparel – Listed are the top eight reasons why a consumer purchases a sports licensed apparel item.

    7. Tops in the College Market – Listed are the top-selling CLC member institutions and licensees for fiscal year ending June 30,2003.

This is just some of the data found in the Sports Licensing White Paper.

This report is available for immediate electonic delivery in PDF format or as a Kinko's Doc Store printed copy. OBTAIN REPORT