Big banks and energy companies have seen a new way of doing business in music festivals. They are massive events, where more than 250,000 attendees can pass through, such as this year’s Primavera Sound in Barcelona, ??and which gather an attractive audience for companies with whom it is difficult to connect. The goal is none other than to attract young customers. That is why companies such as Santander, CaixaBank, Iberdrola and Endesa, among others, are opening up new avenues of sponsorship through different formats. The joint investment this year, the summer of the big boom, was around 60 million, according to business sources, which makes music events emerge as a major competitor to sports.
There are two differences between music and football. First, the price. Sponsoring the Spanish Football League, as Santander and BBVA have done in recent years, exceeds 20 million a year. A large music festival, such as Primavera Sound or Madrid’s Mad Cool, costs around a million. The second big difference is the return: music is the great opportunity to connect with potential new customers.
Each company has created its own strategy. Santander bank has invested the most in sponsoring major musical events, around 15 million, according to market sources. The bank does not comment on specific figures. Each division of the entity has its own strategy. In Spain, the bet is multiple: main sponsor of Mad Cool, investment in Primavera Sound, in Los 40’s concerts… In addition, it has reached an agreement with Live Nation, the main promoter of musical events, because Santander customers access tickets, and could announce new deals in the coming months. Santander has also launched SMusic, a music content platform.
However, the bank maintains sports sponsorship. After leaving La Liga or the Champions League, he has agreements with Ferrari, golf and sportsmen such as Rafa Nadal, Pau Gasol and John Rahm.
CaixaBank wants to “have a presence in the territory and a social, cultural and economic impact”. The bank sponsors several large-scale music festivals under the Music Experience concept: Madrid Live Experience (Madrid), Peralada (Alt Empordà), 1001 Músicas (Granada), Starlite (Marbella), Festival Jardins Terramar (Garraf), Cap Roig Festival (Baix Empordà) and Miramar Gauak (Donosti). He also collaborates with several artists privately and has chosen Pablo Alborán as a cultural ambassador. In addition, in collaboration with Warner Music Spain, CaixaBank has promoted The Square, a virtual space for immersive musical experiences in the metaverse.
In the global bet, the entity directed by Gonzalo Gortázar does not neglect the strategic bet for sport: football, basketball, running and Paralympic sports, with more than 300 agreements in force.
In the field of energy, Iberdrola, Repsol and Endesa are the companies with the biggest commitment to music. The star proposal of the company chaired by Ignacio Galán is to name a space where Mad Cool is celebrated. Iberdrola Music is a venue of 185,000 square meters for a capacity of 100,000 people in Madrid. “Green is our flag, and the goal is to make the space sustainable,” says the company.
Repsol has started sponsoring large-scale cultural events this year. Their goal is to partner with events to supply them with renewable fuel. Decarbonisation as a flag. Repsol does not put its logo on the event, but provides solutions to the organizers who want carbon neutrality. The Mare Nostrum festival in Fuengirola is one of the company’s bets. “We are from long lights, a company that supplies multi-energy”, indicate energy sources.
Endesa has also started investing significant resources. It already sponsors up to four festivals across Spain: Jardín Delicias (Madrid), Mallorca Live Festival (Mallorca), Cruïlla (Barcelona) and City (Zaragosa). The company led by José Bogas maintains sponsorships in the sports market, such as the Endesa basketball league, but assumes it is saturated. Naturgy, for its part, has renounced this kind of mass events.
