Tudor Pro Cycling Team wins 6th Sponsoring Excellence Award

The "Night of Sponsorship" once again proved to be a beacon event for the industry, a rendezvous of creativity and commitment in sponsorship. Right in the middle of it all was the m&k team, which captured the exclusive voices of the protagonists immediately after the award ceremony in order to authentically document the emotions of this special evening in the surroundings of the Zurich Kunsthaus.

Sponsoring Switzerland: Importance and challenges of the award

Markus Simmen, Member of the Board of Sponsoring Switzerlandemphasizes the importance of the Sport Excellence Awardwhich was awarded for the sixth time. It serves as a central communication platform for all players in sponsorship - givers and receivers. Simmen remembers the beginnings shortly before coronavirus, a time that impressively demonstrated the activity and cohesion of the industry. The award makes an important contribution to the internal justification of sponsorship activities and recognizes their value. For Simmen, there are always challenges for both sides in sponsorship, a continuous cycle of give and take. The 2025 vintage shows the immense range of the scene, from sport to health and culture.

Focus on the jury: innovative spirit and the courage to try something new

Oliver Niedermann, CEO of Ticketcorner AG and jury president of the Sponsoring Excellence Award, is extremely satisfied with the 2025 vintage. The diversity of the projects, from large corporations to small companies with exciting activation, reflects the vibrancy of the Swiss sponsorship market. For Niedermann, innovation and the courage to try something new, even with the risk of failure, are the most important success factors. The jury held intensive discussions, but ultimately came to a unanimous decision. For the future, he hopes for a broad range of projects and an earlier dialog in order to be able to present an even more meaningful shortlist.

The main prize winner: Tudor Pro Cycling Team - More than just victories

The "Tudor Pro Cycling Team" was founded in 2022 by two-time Olympic champion Fabian Cancellara. Since making the leap into the professional category of world cycling in 2023, the team has already celebrated a number of successes. In 2025, the Swiss racing team is continuing its attack and now has two potential winning riders on the team, Marc Hirschi and Julian Alaphilippe, who have already won major races. This is primarily possible thanks to the sponsorship of the Geneva watch brand Tudor, for which the team represents a flagship project in its comprehensive marketing initiatives in cycling.

"Tudor Pro Cycling Team" has set itself the goal of becoming one of the world's best cycling teams and inspiring enthusiasm for cycling in Switzerland. The path to the top of the world will be pursued with a clear value structure. "Swiss. Human. Performance." is the framework with which the Swiss team puts people at the center of its actions and drives innovation in all areas.

Jury President Oliver Niedermann honored the winner with the words: "The 'Tudor Pro Cycling Team' absolutely convinced the jury. Thanks to the shared vision and the comprehensive commitment of the sponsor Tudor from the start of the project to the top of the world, a sustainably successful company has been established in Switzerland."

Three special prizes awarded

The seven-member independent jury scrutinized all the projects submitted, paying particular attention to the criteria of innovation, relevance, creativity and impact. The high ratings led to three special prizes being awarded to "Pink Cube Test Your Breast", the "EVZ Women & Girls Program" and "The Flipcode Mystery".

Special Responsibility Award for "Pink Cube Test your Breast"

The Pink Cube brings education about breast cancer to women and men of all ages. Gynecologists show them how they can examine their breasts themselves and which early detection measures are important for them. With its eye-catching pink design and the words "Test Your Breast", the container attracts attention and makes an important topic more accessible.

Special Pioneer Award for "EVZ Women & Girls Program"

EVZ launched a program in 2023 to get girls and women interested in ice hockey and offer them equal opportunities. The Women & Girls program is not a stand-alone project or brand, but an integral part of the club. With the clear vision "Do it right or not at all", EVZ is pursuing ambitious goals for fair and sustainable promotion in women's sport.

Special Activation Award for "The Flipcode Mystery"

As a main partner of the SRF series "Tschugger", Samsung launched the immersive sponsorship multichannel campaign "The Flipcode Mystery" with lead agency Sir Mary in November 2023. Fans became "chuggers" themselves and were able to solve a criminal case involving the then newly launched Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5 mobile phone live on TV. The innovation of this 360-degree case lies in the fact that both the TV sponsorship billboards and the off-air multichannel measures of the Samsung campaign could be realized with the original cast of the series.

Pink Cube also wins the audience award

Of all the projects submitted, the nine nominated for the main prize and the special prizes were presented live to the large audience at the Zurich Kunsthaus. As in 2024, over 275 people from the Swiss sponsorship scene voted online for the Audience Award, which this year went to Pink Cube Test Your Breast.

Changes to the Board of Sponsoring Switzerland

The General Assembly of Sponsoring Switzerland took place in the run-up to the Night of Sponsoring. Fabienne Merlet, Head of Partnerships & CSR at the Locarno Film Festival, was elected to succeed Melanie Schmid and Markus Simmen as Head of Communications. The President also announced that Prisca and Beat Ritschard, who had been on the Board for over 25 years, 15 of which they had spent in charge of the secretariat, would be stepping down from the Board in the middle of the year.

Sabrina Vögeli and Luana Bergamin from Bergamin Conceptions will take over the management of the office.

Further information on the award-winning cases can be found at SponsoringSwitzerland.ch. The next Award Night is expected to take place on March 25, 2026.