The primary purpose of this study was to explore how professional runners form attitudes toward sponsors. The secondary purpose was to understand perceived relationships of professional runners with sponsors. This study was guided by the relationship marketing theory, and the conceptual background on sponsorship relationships was presented in detail. The research was conducted with a USA Track & Field certified professional running team, using semi-structured interviews with eight of 12 team members. The results were categorized into three common themes: (1) relational benefits, (2)...Read more
