Sponsorship in hard economic times

When times get hard, the first reaction of many companies is to pull their sponsorship, tuck their advertising dollars away and focus on just above the line advertising, as this was seen as more effective than sponsorship. But, when times are tough, isn't it really a great opportunity to get involved in sponsorship opportunities that you may not have been able to take advantage of previously.

Sponsorship can deliver brand loyalty and emotional connection from your customers to your brand - and during and economic downturn, isn't that what your brand values most?