New York, NY -- U.S-based Caribbean immigrants are sharply criticizing the marketing of the 2007 Cricket World Cup, contending that organizers of the event are largely ignoring the huge North American immigrant population, even as officials say only half of the tickets for next year’s event have been sold to date.
“I am very disappointed that the Cricket World Cup has neglected the West Indian community in a big way. I think they are ignorant to the fact that there is a loyal fan base out here and I think that they have dropped the ball in a big way by not including the marketing of cricket to a huge West Indian market in the U.S.,” President of Irie Jam Media, Bobby Clarke, told HBN Friday.
Clarke, the Jamaican-born CEO of the New York-based radio, media and television company, added, “I can’t see how they (the CWC organizing committee) could want to make it profitable and not want to do some major marketing here.”
The CWC, the most important and prestigious tournament in international cricket, is held every four years and is being held in the West Indies for the first time in its history from March 5 to April 28, 2007. Sixteen countries will contest the one-day tournament, which will be played in nine Caribbean countries.
But reports continue to surface of only modest ticket sales less than three months from its opening. Ticket sales have been going at a “moderate” pace, Delroy Taylor, Project Officer in charge of Ticketing for the CWC, told HBN recently, but insisted that sales for the Super 8 group stage, the semi-finals and the final have been brisk.
But Clarke feels CWC officials may be satisfied with concentrating on marketing and ticket sales mostly in the Caribbean region, a contention supported by Treasurer of the United States of America Cricket Association, Selwyn Caesar.
“I think the CWC could make more money from marketing here in North America than in the Caribbean three times over,” the New York-based Caesar told HBN. “The Caribbean audience cannot sustain cricket in the Caribbean.”
Caesar blamed the competition’s poor U.S marketing, especially in New York, on the demise of Caribbean-influenced radio station, WLIB about two year ago.
Former Guyana fast bowler and USACA coach, Linden Fraser, also conceded CWC marketing of the showpiece event is poor, saying it may be what is contributing to modest ticket sales.
“What I am hearing now is nothing at all. It has left a very bitter taste in the mouth of the West Indian immigrants in the U.S.,” Clarke said. “There is still time for them to make good and reach out and embrace the immigrants.”
But marketing executive, Wanda Fisher, who has worked with top companies in reaching out to the Caribbean Diaspora market, believes the lack of buzz and enthusiasm surrounding the sporting spectacle is directly related to a “misunderstanding” of the CWC’s complex licensing regime governing the tournament.
Fisher, a brands marketing specialist for the New York-based C3C Skyque Marketing and Production Inc., said large companies already spend only modest sums on pitching their products to the small Caribbean market and the CWC regime is not making such marketing efforts any easier.
“We’re already struggling with sponsorship dollars. The unfortunate part is that some of these companies don’t have large budgets for cricket and for the Caribbean too,” Fisher told HBN.
She also conceded “rumors” of a lack of sufficient accommodation for the large numbers of visitors expected in the region is only exacerbating the problem.
The Jamaica Tourist Board was recently denied use of the ICC CWC logo in a proposed advertising campaign surrounding the event, amid tight rules prohibiting ambush marketing. But apart from a television spot of CIN TV in New York, there’s been no other advertisement and promotion has been largely limited to a few forums organized by several Local Organizing Committees of the host venues.
Officials are hoping that more than 100,000 fans will attend the event that runs from March 13 to April 28, 2007. The first match of the tournament will take place on Tuesday March 13 at the newly renovated Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica between the West Indies and Pakistan in Group D.
Fifty-one matches will take place over 47 days in eight countries. Almost all of the countries are building new stadiums for the event.