MILWAUKEE--Omnicom's GMR Marketing is merging with sports event marketing player SportsMark Management Group.

The two Omnicom firms will continue to operate under their respective names until the merger is complete, resulting in a business that counts more than 20 offices in 10 countries across North America, South America, Europe and Asia-Pacific.

“This is a merger of two of the most significant global sports and entertainment agencies in the industry,” said Gary Reynolds, GMR’s CEO and chairman.  “As one entity, we will offer our clients an unmatched combination of strategic and operational resources with deep event marketing experience and key relationships with global sports and entertainment properties.”

GMR and SportsMark have collaborated on a number or programmes over the years. Recently, both managed more than 20 sponsor campaigns at the London 2012 Olympic Games, in addition to collectively planning events, corporate hospitality, environmental design and production, product showcasing, and digital/social platforms for nine clients at the upcoming Super Bowl XLVII in New Orleans.

“With an emphasis on broadening creative, digital, social and mobile expertise and innovations, the GMR-SportsMark merger brings our clients top industry talent, integrated B2C and B2B capabilities, and efficiency gains across the board,” commented Jan Katzoff, head of global sports and entertainment for the combined entity.