Influence Group Retained by Jaguar to Create and Manage the Jaguar Academy Of Sport

LONDON - March 8, 2010: Influence the marketing, PR and communications and digital group have been retained by Jaguar to create and manage the Jaguar Academy of Sport which was launched to critical acclaim at a ceremony in London last week.

The Academy is a long-term commitment by Jaguar to British sport that aims to celebrate, recognize and inspire the very best of British sporting talent and success. Aims that will be achieved through a Bursary Fund which will support new British sporting talent, a prestigious annual Awards, a unique club of the best of British sport which will be used to inspire the next generation and a vibrant website celebrating British sporting talent and achievement www.jaguaracademyofsport.co.uk

The launch was masterminded by Influence and held at the Berkeley Hotel. It was attended by British sporting legends and Jaguar Academy of Sport Patrons, Sir Ian Botham, Gareth Edwards CBE, Dame Kelly Holmes DBE, Denise Lewis OBE, Sir Stephen Redgrave and David Beckham CBE via video message. Jaguar Academy of Sport Ambassadors, Jamie Baulch, Dave Brailsford CBE, Martin Brundle, Tasha Danvers, Jessica Ennis, Mark Foster, Colin Jackson CBE, Dave Roberts CBE, Shane Williams and Michael Vaughan OBE were also in attendance.

The Influence Group worked closely with Jaguar UK Managing Director, Geoff Cousins and Jaguar UK Marketing Director, David Steele to create the property and develop each of the elements of Academy. This included developing the overall concept, the Bursary Fund, the Awards, the website design and content, athlete recruitment and logo as well as the activation plans going forward.

Stuart Dyble, Director, Influence: “With the launch of the stunning new XJ completing the modern day transformation of the Jaguar brand, Jaguar MD, Geoff Cousins, had the foresight to see that the timing was right to significantly increase Jaguar’s involvement in British sport. At the same time it was our view that the coming years would be a halcyon period for sport in this country, so the core mission of the Jaguar Academy of Sport became to play a part in turning this unique opportunity into a lasting legacy. Jaguar has always represented the best of British and is rapidly becoming one of the most progressive luxury car brands in the World. As such we are really proud to be Jaguar’s partners in creating this exciting new property and activating it in the years ahead.”

Geoff Cousins, Managing Director, Jaguar UK: “This is a long term commitment by Jaguar to support British sport and contribute to the creation of the next generation of British sporting talent. Just like British sport, Jaguar is now beating the best in world with our latest range of sports cars and sports saloons. It is the perfect time to develop an even closer relationship with British sport and attract a more diverse customer base to the Jaguar brand. Influence were the ideal partners to develop the program with Jaguar and we leveraged their expertise in sports marketing, communications and digital.”

Day-to-day the Academy will be represented by a news website www.jaguaracademyofsport.co.uk The website will showcase British sport and its greatest performers past & present and it will commemorate our many successes and anticipate events and tournaments where we expect our competitors to do us proud again. Digital Influence designed the site, is managing the content and will also utilize the latest techniques in social media to engage visitors and encourage comment and opinion.