ECAL partners with J.League club Sanfrecce Hiroshima to enahance fan experience

Leading calendar marketing solution ECAL has today announced its official launch into the Japanese market, partnering with the celebrated J.League club, Sanfrecce Hiroshima.

The landmark partnership will introduce ECAL's powerful 'sync to calendar' technology to Japanese sports fans for the first time, delivering a new era of dynamic, real-time digital communications for the club's passionate supporters.

At the heart of the partnership is ECAL's smart digital calendar feature, which allows fans to sync the official Sanfrecce Hiroshima match schedule directly to their personal digital calendar of choice. With a simple click, the full season schedule, including J.League, Emperor's Cup, J.League Cup fixtures, and other important events, are seamlessly integrated into a fan's daily life schedule.

This direct line of communication is a game-changer for fan engagement. Beyond just dates and times, ECAL's technology delivers rich, event-based information, including broadcast details, direct links to buy tickets, access the match-day program, and shop for the latest merchandise. All events in the user's calendar are dynamically updated by the club, ensuring fans never miss a moment of the action. For Sanfrecce Hiroshima, this creates a powerful new channel to increase awareness, boost engagement, attendance, sales, and to serve and understand their audience better.

Patrick Barrett, Founder & Chief Executive of ECAL advised "we are incredibly proud to launch ECAL in Japan and thrilled to partner with a club as prestigious and forward-thinking as Sanfrecce Hiroshima.

“This is a significant milestone in our global expansion strategy. Japan is a market with some of the most passionate and digitally-savvy sports fans in the world. Our commitment is to help organisations like Sanfrecce Hiroshima build even deeper, more meaningful connections with their audience. We believe the personal calendar is the most valuable and intimate space to connect with fans around their favourite events, and we look forward to helping the club deliver amazing experiences for their supporters."

Sanfrecce Hiroshima has a long-standing commitment to leveraging technology to enhance the fan experience. The integration of ECAL aligns perfectly with its strategy to bring its community closer to the team they love.

Shun Yamaji, Head of Business Operations of Sanfrecce Hiroshima added "we have introduced ECAL's calendar integration in order for our fans to "never miss out, never get lost, and can take action instantly. By allowing supporters to easily check match schedules, broadcast details, and ticket information right within their everyday calendar application, we aim to lower the barriers to attending, watching, and purchasing - and further strengthen their connection with the club and improve their experience."

The ECAL 'sync to calendar' button is now live on the official Sanfrecce Hiroshima website.

About ECAL
ECAL is the world's leading calendar marketing platform, used by hundreds of major brands globally in sports, entertainment, media, and e-commerce. ECAL's smart 'sync to calendar' technology enables publishers to deliver rich, dynamic, and personalised events directly into their audience's personal digital calendar, creating a direct and highly effective marketing and communications channel. ECAL is trusted by top-tier organisations such as the Premier League, Formula 1, NBA, Major League Baseball, LaLiga, World Rugby, Disney+, Fox Sports, and now, the J.League.

About Sanfrecce Hiroshima
Sanfrecce Hiroshima is a professional Japanese football club based in Hiroshima, competing in the J1 League, the top flight of Japanese football. Founded in 1938, it is one of the most successful clubs in the history of Japanese football, with numerous league titles and cup victories. Known for its passionate supporters and commitment to its community, Sanfrecce Hiroshima plays its home games at the Edion Peace Wing Hiroshima stadium.