Nutrition Policies and Food Sponsorship in Sports Settings

Sporting environments—from community recreation centres to elite stadia—have emerged as prominent arenas for both nutrition policy implementation and corporate food sponsorship. On one hand, governing bodies and governmental agencies have sought to introduce nutrition guidelines aimed at improving the healthfulness of foods offered in canteens, vending machines and concession stands. These policies vary from voluntary recommendations to mandated standards, with interventions including healthy vending contracts, menu labelling and capacity-building support for facility managers. On the other hand, food and beverage companies continue to invest heavily in sponsorship of teams, events and individual athletes, leveraging brand visibility to shape consumer attitudes and preferences. This dual dynamic creates a complex public health landscape: nutrition policies seek to limit the availability and marketing of energy-dense, nutrient-poor products, while sponsorship arrangements often promote those same products. Emerging studies have documented not only the penetration of unhealthy food marketing in sports settings but also the potential of pro-health sponsorship models and targeted counter-advertising to shift consumer choices. The interplay between policy and sponsorship carries global significance, offering practical lessons for sports organisations, policymakers and public health advocates aiming to align commercial partnerships with health objectives.

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Nutrition Policies and Food Sponsorship in Sports Settings publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in nutrition policies and food sponsorship in sports settings across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Nutrition policy: A set of formal guidelines or regulations established by governments or organisations to govern the availability, promotion and nutritional standards of foods in specific settings.

Food sponsorship: A commercial arrangement in which a food or beverage company provides financial or material support to a sport entity in exchange for brand visibility, promotional rights and marketing opportunities.

Capacity building intervention: A structured programme of training, resources and organisational support designed to enhance the ability of facilities or staff to adopt and implement nutrition guidelines effectively.

Food environment quality: A composite measure of the healthfulness of food options available within a setting, often categorised by nutritional criteria such as “do not sell,” “sell sometimes” and “sell most.”

References

1. The impact of unhealthy food sponsorship vs. pro-health sponsorship models on young adults’ food preferences: a randomised controlled trial. BMC Public Health (2018).
2. Food marketing in recreational sport settings in Canada: a cross-sectional audit in different policy environments using the Food and beverage Marketing Assessment Tool for Settings (FoodMATS). International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity (2018).
3. Eat, play, live: a randomized controlled trial within a natural experiment examining the role of nutrition policy and capacity building in improving food environments in recreation and sport facilities. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity (2019).