MediaCom Sport has expanded into the Middle East and North Africa with the opening of an office in Dubai.
The WPP-owned consultancy will be run by Marwan Bourad, who has worked at Leo Burnett and Starcom and has experience in sports marketing spanning 15 years.
Marcus John, global head at MediaCom Sport, said: “MENA is both, from an advertising as well as sponsorship perspective, one of the fastest growing regions in the world. Our clients are investing heavily across the region and I’m very pleased to be able to offer our unique tool sets and strategic insights to that part of the world now as well. Marwan brings very strong regional expertise to our team which will deliver immediate returns to our clients.”
MediaCom Sport was originally established in 2011 to better connect with consumers and secure sponsorship budgets that work closely with a company’s media strategy. The agency has since worked with clients such as Dell, Shell and Proctor & Gamble and currently has offices in Europe, Asia, America and Australia.
“Great opportunities are rare commodities in the sports marketing industry in the Middle East,” added Bouraad. “When the chance to lead the new sports marketing division at MediaCom surfaced I didn’t hesitate to become part of this exciting venture. With more and more brands getting involved in sports and the array of projects and opportunities we have lined up, I am looking forward to contributing a great deal to the sports marketing industry in the region.”
Nick Barron, CEO at MediaCom, MENA, said: “Sport is a major part of people’s lives and as a communication business we need expertise in this field. Marwan is the ideal person to support our clients and help integrate sport in their communication plans and develop unique assets for them.”
The launch of MediaCom Sport follows the rolling out of specialist content marketing division MediaCom Beyond Advertising in June.