Enhancing Football Brands Brand Equity

Abstract

The sport entertainment industry has its most famous representative in Europe. Hundreds of professional football clubs are playing in their European football leagues. They attract supporters in front of the screen and in stadiums. The clubs in competitions are medium sized companies. They are competing and working together while they are delivering their core service, the game on the ground. The spectator can be considered as an important budget line for all clubs. Budgets are nevertheless often not balanced and stadium attendance is underdeveloped. We conducted research within two different football nations, France and Germany. Four clubs were in the sample and interviews with the management were carried out. The conceptual approach was based on brand image theories. Football clubs are specific sport brands. Brand image elements attract spectators into the stadium for those brands. These elements can explain the purchase intentions of season tickets and merchandising products. Our research revealed that common elements and differences exist between the clubs, each club having a brand identity. We identified which elements lead to purchase intentions and made best practices evident. The importance of the game is often overestimated by a clubs management. The game and the attractiveness of the stadium are important, but not the only factors explaining stadium attendance. The club has also to be a good club in the community, and corporate social responsibility (CSR) becomes a crucial issue.