Abstract
The intense competition in the sports sector has caused changes in the sports marketing perception of team management. Club managements aim to develop brand relationships, strengthen fan loyalty and manage fan behaviors to establish an emotional bond between club brands and fans for gaining competitive advantage. In this context, the current study aimed to assess the relationships between brand relationships, fan loyalty, and fan behavior in football teams. The survey sample is 503 (293 male, 210 female) respondents. Data were collected from Besiktas Gymnastics Club, Fenerbahce Sports Club, and Galatasaray Sports Club team supporters by face-to-face survey method. The structural equation model was used in the research hypothesis testing. The findings identified no statistically significant effect of the attributes and benefits, defined as team brand associations facets, on fan behaviors. Brand associations had a significant influence on the attitudinal and behavioral loyalty of supporters. Besides, behavioral loyalty was an important determinant of fan behaviors. The results indicated that approximately 68% of the variance of attitudinal loyalty could be explained by the attributes and benefits of brand associations’ facets (R2=.677). Furthermore, facets of the brand associations accounted for approximately 66% of behavioral loyalty variance (R2=.659). Both brand associations (attributes and benefits) and fan loyalty (attitudinal and behavior loyalty) facets explained approximately 32% of the variance in fan behavior (R2=.317). Consequently, it is important to create strong and competitive brand associations in football teams, independent of sporting achievement, create positive fan behaviors, and support these behaviors. The research results could be useful for sports managers/marketers and theorists to explain and interpret fan behaviors.
Highlights
In the early 2000's Bauer et al (2005) pointed out the development of the sports industry with the words «sport is becoming more commercialized, and sports entities have become more professional over the years»
The result indicated that the mean of the data was 5.14±1.12, 4.88±1.18, 5.34±1.54, and 4.62±1.64 for attributes, benefits, attitudinal loyalty, and behavioral loyalty, respectively
This study investigated the structural relationships between brand associations, fan loyalty, and fan behavior in Turkish professional football teams
Summary
In the early 2000's Bauer et al (2005) pointed out the development of the sports industry with the words «sport is becoming more commercialized, and sports entities have become more professional over the years». The global sports market, which was approximately € 380 billion by 2020, is estimated to have a compound annual growth rate of 8% by 2021 (The Business Research Company, 2019; 2020). The global sports market is divided into two parts (spectator and participatory sports). The spectator sports market, which is the focus of this study, constitutes 43.6% (approximately €166 billion) of the global sports market. The share of the sports teams and clubs in the spectator sports market is about 72.5% Sports clubs, which are part of today’s entertainment industry’s changing and competitive structure, strive to increase consumers' entertainment budgets The Relationship Between Brand Associations and Fan Behaviours for Football Teams. Marketing and Management of Innovations, 3, 32-42.
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