EMU Athletics and Aspire extend ticketing partnership

The Aspire Group will continue to handle EMU Athletic tickets through 2023

ATLANTA, GA – The Eastern Michigan University Department of Athletics and The Aspire Sport Marketing Group have announced a six-year extension to their partnership which began in July 2015. The current outsourced ticket sales contract, which was set to end in June 2018, will now run through 2023.

The Fan Relationship Management Center (FRMC) staff has recorded an all-time high for football season tickets since 2014 (190 percent increase). The partnership has also experienced revenue growth of 46 percent since 2014 from total athletics ticket sales and a 26 percent increase in average gate attendance for football from 2015 to 2016.

“We are thrilled to continue and strengthen our relationship with The Aspire Group,” said EMU Vice President/Director of Athletics Scott Wetherbee. “They have demonstrated proven results on our campus already, and we look forward to them helping us further develop our fan base and ticket marketing efforts.”

The addendum includes the addition of one Sales & Service Consultant to the Fan Relationship Management Center staff that supports the Eagles with inbound, outbound, and premium ticket sales, service and retention, ticket operations, and sales and service training.

“In just over two years at Eastern Michigan, we have made great strides in engaging our fan base and connecting with the community,” said Jeff Czachowski, Director of Ticket Sales & Service. “We have shown growth in several areas and are eager to continue with that vision. Alongside great leadership from EMU, The Aspire Group has been treated like family on campus. We are grateful for the partnership and look forward to taking flight with the Eagles over the next several years.

Tony Garrett, Vice President of Fan Relationship Management, serves as the liaison between Aspire and EMU. Garrett currently manages 18 of 36 FRMCs, including the three other Mid-American Conference members: Miami University, the University of Toledo, and Western Michigan University.

“We’d like to thank Scott Wetherbee and EMU Athletics for their continued support of The Aspire Group,” said Garrett. “Since the inception of our partnership, it has been a true team effort to build the fan base year over year at EMU. The best is yet to come for Eagle Nation!”

EMU Athletics is the sixth property of 2017 to renew its contract with Aspire highlighted by the NFL Pro Bowl and the University of Kansas.

About Eastern Michigan University Athletics
Eastern Michigan University has been a member of the Mid-American Conference since 1971 and has been among the league’s most successful members. The Division I program boasts 139 MAC team championships, the most of any team in the league during that span. EMU’s varsity intercollegiate program features 21 different sports, nine men’s teams and 12 women’s teams, the program employs more than 70 full-time staff, and supports more than 500 student-athletes. Eastern Michigan, which has had a representative at every summer Olympics since 1960, has won 15 team national championships and 54 individual national titles since 1932.

About The Aspire Group 
The Aspire Group is a global sports and entertainment marketing firm specializing in driving revenues, attendance and fan engagement through industry-leading ticket marketing, sales & customer service. Aspire created the outsourced ticketing niche, revolutionizing Intercollegiate Athletics with the first Fan Relationship Management Center (FRMC) at Georgia Tech in 2009. Over 200 collegiate and professional sports properties have trusted Aspire to drive revenue, attendance and enterprise value growth through the combination of strategic consulting and research services, data insights and best-in-industry fan relationship management.

For inquiries, contact A.J. Smith at 404.389.9100 or aj.smith@theaspiregroupinc.com.