BMO’s soccer sponsorship shows authenticity is earned, not activated

Every sponsor wants to be authentic. They want fans to believe they understand their passion, share their values and have a genuine reason for being there.

The problem is that authenticity isn't something a brand can simply claim. Fans are increasingly savvy. They can tell the difference between a sponsor that has invested in something they care about and one that has arrived because there is suddenly a large audience to sell to.

BMO offers a good example of the difference.

The bank was hard to miss during the World Cup in Canada. It took over parts of Toronto, activated in Vancouver, dominated transit and even placed a 50-foot soccer ball on top of its Toronto headquarters branch.

For a brand with little history in the sport, that level of activity could easily have looked opportunistic. For BMO, it didn't.

“We’ve been getting ready for the past 20 years,” jokes Éric Martin, Director of Sponsorships at BMO. “Not really for the World Cup itself, but we’ve been investing in soccer for over two decades from grassroots to professional programs.”

For Martin, the World Cup was neither the beginning nor the end of BMO's involvement in soccer. It was simply a major milestone in a relationship that stretches from Canada's men’s and women’s professional games through to local clubs and grassroots soccer.

Actions, not words

Authenticity and trust are built through repeated behaviour, not claimed through activation.

“We took over the city of Toronto. We were in Vancouver. We showed up where the fans were, including at Canada Soccer House Fan Fest,” says Martin. “But I don't think anyone saw that as opportunistic. They saw that as a continuity for BMO because we were there before.”

That history gives BMO permission to show up when the big moments arrive. Fans have seen the brand invest in soccer before, and crucially, they have seen it when the cameras weren't necessarily watching.

Martin recalls speaking to supporters at major games who remembered BMO from local tournaments where their children had received a soccer ball from the bank.

“We were there when there were 75,000 people in a stadium in Edmonton and Montreal,” he says. “We were also there when there were 75 people in a small community outside of the city.”

It is a simple example, but an important one. Plenty of brands want the credibility that comes from being associated with something people care deeply about. Far fewer are willing to spend years earning it.

From authenticity to trust

The longer-term benefit is that repeated behaviour builds trust.

“Trust isn't claimed, it's earned through consistent support and meaningful action,” says Martin. “When we interact with fans, when we do experiences with fans, they know we'll be there. They know we'll do things right.”

BMO says it now has around 90% association with soccer among Canadians. Martin says some fans ref to BMO  as the “Bank of Soccer”.

That kind of association is hard to build through a single sponsorship, no matter how much money you spend activating it.

“I don't think you can do that through one campaign if you're a brand that never invested in the sport,” says Martin. “This is 20 years of investment, and then you're getting to that big milestone.”

This is perhaps where the real value of long-term sponsorship can be overlooked. Each individual partnership or activation can be measured on its own merits, but over time those investments can also compound. Awareness becomes association; association becomes familiarity; and, if the brand continues to show up in the right way, familiarity can become trust.

Trust, of course, is not the end goal. For a bank like BMO, the value comes when that trust influences consideration, attracts new customers or gives existing ones another reason to stay. Drawing a straight line between a soccer sponsorship and a new bank account may be difficult, but the factors influencing those decisions can take years to build.

What happens when the show leaves town?

The World Cup gave BMO an unusually large platform on which to capitalise on that investment, but its soccer strategy doesn't end with the final whistle.

The bank has renewed its partnership with the Northern Super League, continues to support Canada's national teams with the Women’s World Cup in 2027 and expects its investment in grassroots soccer to grow as more children take up the sport.

For Martin, that continuation is ultimately the test of whether a major sponsorship moment leaves anything meaningful behind.

“If we can talk about legacy, I think it should be judged by what continues after the final World Cup game, not only what happened during the tournament.”

Join the debate

The Sponsor will bring together senior brand leaders in Toronto on 5 November and Chicago on 10 November for sponsors-only roundtables exploring how brands can stand out in an increasingly crowded landscape, turn their sponsorship investment into commercial impact and demonstrate returns. More information and registration here.