It's 6pm on a Saturday night in Birmingham, firework smoke rolls across the Bournbrook playing field as cheerleaders perform a routine to a hillside with several thousand onlooking spectators.

In the meantime, two American Football teams take a half time break, before sparks fly and thunder cracks when pads collide during the second half of the University of Birmingham’s annual XpLosION match.

With a pre-match, half-time and a firework show, live commentary, food and beverage vans as well as a live stream broadcast; XpLosION is as much about the American Football played on the pitch as it is about the entertainment and wider event around it.

Played in front of anywhere between 4000 to 6000 in person spectators, and another several thousand online; UoB’s XpLosION is one of British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) best annual attended sports matches.

It is an exceptional example of where university marketing and student experience have combined to create an excellent and now iconic product.

Professionalism vs Participation: NCAA vs BUCS

Sports and extra-curricular societies play a fundamental role within university experience in the UK. More than 100,000 of the UK’s students compete in BUCS leagues and competitions each academic year.

BUCS is the governing body for most higher education sport in the UK. With over 160 member institutions, and over 50 individual sports, it plays a key part in the life blood of university culture and student experience across the UK for thousands of students.

The NCAA, the National Collegiate Athletics Association, is essentially the American equivalent of BUCS. Unlike BUCS, which focus more on collegiate experience, and grass roots level competition, NCAA governs professional level sport – notably its American Football and Basketball programmes.

With some American college stadiums holding more than 100,000 in-person capacity, dwarfing most English Premier League clubs; it is fair to say that the Americans operate in a different realm of enormity with university sport.

This said, although students in the UK don’t quite get the coliseum match day experience, and events such as XpLosION are the peak of the British university sport experience, they do offer something their American alternatives do not…

UK based students get to participate.

The BUCS experience

Unlike American college sport, which is predominantly reserved for the country’s highest performing athletes, who are looking to turn their sporting ambitions into careers, BUCS sport allows anywhere between Olympian aspiring athletes to novice grassroots beginners to participate.

Students at UK institutions no matter their background get the chance to be a part of their universities’ sporting clubs, often with limited or no experience. BUCS offers a chance for students to participate in sports they may not have had access to previously.

For many students in the UK these clubs define their university experience. Whether representing their institution each week or making it through to BUCS Big Wednesday – the finals of many BUCS sporting competitions, students often have university defining moments with their clubs and make lifelong friends and connections simultaneously.

So why do universities not promote their club opportunities more broadly?

The lack of limelight

Institutions in the UK primarily promote courses, facilities, faculty and graduate opportunities when marketing themselves to applicants.  However, if young applicants see an institution which can offer those large student experiences, like XpLosION, they can make the difference in an application going to a particular university over a similar institution.

In BUCS’ end of year student survey in 2024, the second largest detractor students experienced whilst involved with their clubs was the fact they felt their university did not promote their club to a suitable level.

It is clear to see that students care deeply about their club commitments; it is not just some extra-curricular experience to do whilst studying, however a university defining and social experience.

Currently UK institutions broadly are not doing enough to promote their respective clubs internally nor externally to potential applicants.

The money struggles of British Universities: International Rescue is on the way

It is no secret that many British universities currently are under great financial pressures. Pressures have come from a variety of places, rising operational costs, capping of tuition fees whilst inflation increases, and the decrease of EU based students.

International students play a vital role in financial viability for most institutions. EU student numbers have decreased sharply in recent years, post Brexit.

EU accepted applicants fell by 50% in 2022. Similarly in 2023 applicant numbers were down a further 24%. These numbers were supplied by a government report on international students in UK education. It concluded EU applicant and acceptance numbers were the lowest they had been since the sector was reorganised in 1994.

This said, Higher Education Statistics Agency found that international entrants students from outside the UK have increased vastly, even breaking records. With over 400,000 students from non-EU countries in 2023. Overseas students make up 34% of all entrants at UK universities. That’s 29,000 from the EU and 430,000 from outside of the EU.

So, what does this have to do with promotion of university sports clubs and promoting the university student experience?

Universities need to generate revenue. Promoting their sports programmes through PR not just to domestic applicants but international applicants can attract a large pool of international student athletes. This does not take vast sums of money to market nor promote for universities; it is merely a strategy realignment.

The UWE Bullets: how smart recruitment brings success on and off the field

A perfect example of this is the University of the West of England (UWE). UWE just prior to the pandemic and heavily since, decided they were going to promote some of their key high performance sports programmes to international markets, one of which being American Football.

UWE realised that for a domestic American student a postgraduate degree in the States costs somewhere in the realms of £14,000-£50,000 per year. Equivalent courses at UWE and similar institutions across the UK cost around £18,000.

UWE knew that if they marketed to an American applicant pool, advertising European masters’ programmes cheaper than the majority of domestic US ones, whilst simultaneously offering athlete scholarships schemes on top of that, and their high-performance American Football programme they would: attract international fee-paying students, improve their own club - now four-time consecutive national champs, but increase their domestic profile notability.

When marketing any institution, being able to show key unique features is so vital. UWE have been able to do this with limited resources and found unparalleled success in many areas.

“On final analysis, good cost control together with strong student recruitment numbers has enabled the University to remain financially robust and delivered an operating surplus for the year of £4.0m,” states UWE’s annual report.

Although UWE’s sports programmes make up a small drop in their overall finances, their recruitment strategy which pulls in elite international student athletes - importantly paying international fees as well as mutually benefits their clubs and domestic public image.

With the success of UWE’s American football programme and notoriety in the BUCS community, domestic applicants who have a keen interest in playing American Football whilst at university, now consider UWE to be a key place to make an application on top of their academic reasonings.

You win, I win, we all win

Universities than run events like XpLosION, or like UWE use their BUCS teams to help promote and market themselves domestically and internationally, which can not only can help support financially struggling universities, bringing in international fees and promotional opportunities, however, grow domestic clubs and sporting competitions.

Overall enhancing this untapped pool of student sport in the UK into domestic and international markets, is a strategy more institutions need to align with; which not only ensures strong recruitment but benefits the UK student experience.

Author: Adam Kelly-Moore

Adam understands how to tap into current news and ensure his clients’ voices are heard. He secures strategic media visibility for renowned institutions from around the world, including Trinity Business School, Hult International Business School, and more. Adam understands the value of higher education first-hand, having achieved his undergraduate degree in Law and Politics at Cardiff University, a respected Russell Group institution, Adam built on his academic success with a Masters in International Journalism, at Cardiff’s School of Journalism, Media and Culture.