Club Brand Research Articles

The role of perceived value in football club branding: a developing league perspective

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to identify which dimensions of perceived value best mediate football club branding and fan loyalty from a developing league perspective.Design/methodology/approachUsing a cross-sectional design, we collected data using questionnaires from football fans in Ghana (N = 700). The data were analysed using SmartPLS V3, applying structural equation modelling with bootstrapping procedure.FindingsThe results indicate that club branding is an effective precursor of fan loyalty. Moreover, the findings suggest that functional, social and emotional values mediated club branding and fan loyalty, whereas epistemic and economic values did not.Originality/valueThis study contributes to sports management literature by identifying the dimensions of perceived value that will be relevant in the development of club brands in the developing league context.

Pengaruh Kualitas Produk Dan Brand Trust Terhadap Keputusan Pembelian Air Minum Dalam Kemasan Merek Club

Drinking water is a basic need that must be fulfilled because more than half of the composition of the human body is water. However, the quality of water currently is not suitable for consumption because it contains many harmful bacteria. Another alternative to meet the need for drinking water is bottled drinking water. Seeing the large number of needs for AMDK, it should be in line with the increasing sales of various AMDK producing companies. However, the Club has experienced decreased sales fluctuations compared to other competitor companies. So, this study aims to determine the effect of product quality and brand trust on the decision to purchase Club Brand Bottled Drinking Water. The research was conducted online and data collection was carried out by distributing questionnaires via the g-form. The technique used to take samples was purposive sampling with a population of 98 respondents. The analysis technique used is component-based Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) method using tools Patrial Least Square (PLS). The results of the hypothesis testing of this study show that the product quality variable and Brand Trust variable have a significant and positive direction influence on the decision to purchase Club Brand Bottled Drinking Water.

Rethinking brand management within sport: advancing towards the integrative sport brand ecosystem (ISBE)

ABSTRACT Research Question Current research increasingly takes a multi-actor-dominant logic and situates sport brands within ecosystems. However, the multi-actor-dominant logic has not been captured in a holistic concept yet. We aim to advance current thinking of sport brands and therefore conceptualise the integrative sport brand ecosystem (ISBE), emerging around a single sport brand. Research Methods We adopt a qualitative single case study approach to the German football club brand FC St. Pauli. Semi-structured interviews with multiple actors (N = 26) and secondary data (N = 35) inform our conceptualisation of the ISBE. Following an abductive approach, the ISBE evolved simultaneously through theoretical and empirical work. Results and Findings The ISBE comprises all actors interested in a sport brand. Actors engage on institutional and emergent brand engagement platforms to co-create the sport brand. As the focal actor within the ISBE, the brand conductor develops and communicates a first brand identity and facilitates brand meaning co-creation processes. Brand identity needs to be constantly adapted and reinforced by the brand conductor. Implications This article provides a holistic perspective on brand co-creation among multiple actors and the role of the brand conductor. We examine the organisational brand management perspective, the network of actors actively co-creating sport brands, and the underlying structures of brand co-creation within the context of sport brands and the multi-actor-dominant logic. This opens new directions for research on sport brands, but also encourages sport practitioners to rethink their brand management.

What drives sponsorship effectiveness? An examination of the roles of brand community identification, brand authenticity, and sponsor–club congruence

AbstractThis research examines the influence of brand community identification (BCI) on three measures of sponsorship effectiveness—brand advocacy, purchase intention, and sponsor‐brand choice. Additionally, we investigate the psychological mechanism and the moderators between BCI and sponsorship outcomes. We collected data from members of two brand communities, across four experiments (2 × 2 between‐subject designs), during soccer league events. Our findings demonstrate that BCI increased brand advocacy and purchase intention. It shows a novel psychological mechanism (brand community engagement) between BCI and brand advocacy; both brand authenticity and sponsor–club congruence serve as boundary conditions. Counter‐intuitively, our study revealed that both high‐congruent and low‐congruent sponsor brands could be effective, depending on consumers' identification with the brand community. Our research makes several meaningful theoretical and practical contributions. Sports clubs and sponsors must cultivate consumers' identification with the club's brand community, which offers two‐fold benefits; it leads to greater effectiveness, measured in terms of club brand engagement and sponsor‐brand advocacy. Moreover, our research demonstrates that consumers, regardless of their identification with the brand community, will stop supporting a sponsor brand if they perceive it as less authentic.

Sources of resources and, engagement in social networks and media exposure of teams participating in the National Futsal League 2021

Futsal is one of the most practiced sports in Brazil and the world, both in professional leagues and amateur practice. The study aimed to verify if there is a relationship between the type of club, sources of resources, engagement in social networks, and media exposure among the teams participating in the 2021 League. For this purpose, quantitative-qualitative descriptive research was used, which used document analysis; the following data were collected and analyzed: 1) characterization of clubs (host city and population of the municipality); 2) possible sources of income for clubs (sponsorship, support, membership programs and sale of products) in the year 2021 presented on their websites and official social networks; 3) number of followers on the clubs' social networks (Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter); 4) number of times clubs had their games broadcast and by what means. Regarding the characteristics of the cities of the clubs participating in the League, 13.04% are small cities II, 26.09% are medium-sized, 47.83% are large, and 13.04% are metropolises. Among these clubs, we can observe three types: soccer and socio-sports, where socio-sports and soccer clubs have a smaller number of sponsors when compared to specific clubs. We also noticed the impact of social networks on TV broadcasts, where clubs with more followers had more games broadcast, valuing the club's brand, which facilitates future negotiations in search of sponsorship for the exhibition. In this study, we conclude that socio-sports and football clubs have a lower amount of sponsorship when compared to specific clubs and that clubs with more followers on social networks have more games broadcast on channels of greater prestige and reach, such as open TV and closed. It was found that, as in basketball, in futsal clubs linked to football, there is a greater number of broadcasts, whether through TV, social networks, or streaming.

БРЕНД ЯК ФАКТОР УСПІШНОГО МАРКЕТИНГУ (НА ПРИКЛАДІ БРЕНДУ ФУТБОЛЬНОГО КЛУБУ)

In the modern period of the general commercialization of sports in general and football, as one of its most popular types in particular, the issue of brand management of professional football clubs is gaining relevance. Today, the brand itself is defined as an effective tool for the development and profit-making of a professional football club as a business model. The article examines different views of scientists regarding the meaning of the concepts "brand" and "branding". It was determined that branding is a key and necessary tool for the successful functioning of any enterprise. The definition of the concept of "sports brand" as a resource based on which the function of influencing holistic perception and consumer choice is realized is generalized. It was determined that among modern sports brands, an important role belongs to football brands, since in them you can find a reference combination of emotional, symbolic and reputational components, which are the basis of any brand. Factors affecting the value of a football club brand have been identified. The constituent elements of the football club brand are singled out, which ensure its maximum uniqueness to create a single image of consumer thinking. It was determined that the main factors that affect the value of a football club brand are its history, sports results, personal achievements of football players who play for this club, the size of the football club's budget, the number of partnerships with sponsors and their reputation, the number of fans and average attendance at matches, the club's participation in international tournaments, the number of telecasts of the club's matches, and the number of mentions in the press. The rating of the most expensive football brands in the world in 2022 according to Brand Finance, a brand evaluation consulting company, has been submitted. Characteristic features of the development of the most expensive football brands in 2021-2022. It was determined that the right marketing can help in solving important issues for a professional football club, namely: attracting high-quality football players, encouraging fans to attend matches, attracting mass media. It is noted that the main task of marketing for football brands is to improve their image, taking into account the socio-economic and political conditions that have the greatest impact.

소비자의 골프 클럽 브랜드 마케팅에 대한 가치 평가가 브랜드 선호도에 미치는 영향 : 골프 브랜드 광고 이미지의 매개효과를 중심으로

The correlation between the consumer"s value evaluation level on the brand marketing of golf club manufacturing and sales companies and the preference of golf club brand and the mediating effect of golf brand advertisement image were verified. From March 21, 2021 to May 25, 2021, 281 men and women who lived in Seoul, Gyeong-gi, and Gang-won areas and had experience in rounding and practice were selected as the subjects of the study. The more consumers who choose and purchase golf clubs appreciate the authenticity, suitability, and sustainability value of the golf brand corporate marketing, the more preference for the golf brand increases, and the mediating effect of the brand advertisement image is further strengthened by repurchase and interest.

Social Identity Dimensions as Drivers of Consumer Engagement in Social Media Sports Club

Consumer engagement is defined as a multidimensional concept in this study via the identification of members of a sports club social network and consumer identification with a sports club brand on social networks. Hence, the study focuses on sports clubs that engage with their customers through social media. The purpose of this paper is to provide a conceptual and theoretical understanding of consumer engagement, particularly among sports teams that employ interactive platforms to establish relationships with customers. Furthermore, in order to better comprehend the interaction between consumer and brand, this research approaches customer identification as consisted of two distinct constructs. Consumer identification with members of a sports club social network is separated from customer identification with a sports club brand. Research results point out that the consumer identification with members of the sports club’s social network and consumer identification with the sports club’s brand are positively related to consumer engagement. Furthermore, the value creation process is enhanced if the sport club approaches separately different dimensions of customer engagement in the social networks of the sports club.

Love the star, love the team? The spillover effect of athlete sub brand to team brand advocacy in online brand communities

PurposeThis paper aims to examine the antecedents of brand passion and brand community commitment, namely, self-congruity and athlete attraction, as well as their effects on online brand advocacy in online brand communities.Design/methodology/approachThe sample comprises members of a Facebook football fan club brand community. An online survey measuring athlete-level factors, team-level factors and online brand advocacy provides data to test the conceptual framework using structural equation modeling with partial least squares (PLS-SEM).FindingsThe findings of this paper support the positive spillover effect from athlete subbrand to team brand advocacy, as self-congruity exerted positive effects on brand passion and brand community commitment, while athlete attraction influenced brand community commitment, leading to online brand advocacy.Research limitations/implicationsThe findings validate the dimensions of online brand advocacy and advance research on sports brand hierarchy in brand architecture by establishing the transference effect from athlete to the team brand.Practical implicationsTo effectively manage their brands online, brand managers need to pay attention to the powerful and multifaceted tool of online brand advocacy. Brand managers can capitalize on their active advocates by working closely with them to co-create uplifting and authentic brand stories that are worthwhile for sharing, especially in times of crisis.Originality/valueBuilding on the developmental trajectory of brand love and vicarious brand experience, the findings verify the directionality of the spillover effect and offer insights into the development of brand advocacy across different brand levels.

STUDY ON THE INFLUENCE OF NETWORK FACTORS ON THE LOYALTY AND EMOTIONAL BEHAVIOR OF CHINESE PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL CLUB FANS

BackgroundChina Professional Football League has been in operation for nearly 30 years and has attracted more and more attention from the public and society. China Professional Football League has promoted the professional and commercial development of Chinese football and attracted a large number of fans. At present, Chinese professional football clubs are struggling, but they still get the support of many fans. The development of any club is inseparable from the support of loyal fans, who are the basis of the development of the club. Only with many loyal fans can the club have long-term and strong vitality. Only by making outstanding achievements, excavating the economic benefits of the club, establishing and maintaining the club culture and cultivating a large number of loyal fans, can the club bring profound heritage and solid economic benefits to the club. Football club has a large number of loyal fans, which is the cornerstone of the sustainable and vigorous development of professional football league. However, due to many factors, the loyalty of fans has decreased, which is related to the evaluation of pursuit by the Internet.Subjects and MethodsBased on this, this paper studies the loyalty of Chinese football fans, takes the fans of China Henan sslm football club as the research object, and analyzes the current situation of China Henan sslm football club and its fans. Through the research, it is found that with the continuous development of the Internet, public emotional behavior will have an important impact on football public opinion. There are two directions: one is the top-down impact, the other is the bottom-up impact; It is mainly manifested in two typical ways: social mobilization and emotional social struggle in football public opinion. The main expressions of their emotional behavior are: weakness, anger, sadness and anger, etc. On the basis of combing the collective behavior and emotional struggle, the research finds that the communication framework of emotional behavior mainly includes the communication paths of discourse co meaning, identity co meaning and emotional co meaning; Functional analysis includes target function, attribution function and ideographic function. From the tendency of public sentiment, football public opinion shows criticism, populism, nationalism, pragmatism, patriotism and justice. The social expression of public sentiment in microblog public opinion includes the spiral phenomenon of silence, butterfly effect, herd effect, resentment and so on. From the perspective of psychology, the public emotions in football public opinion are fear, anxiety, anger and sadness, while in terms of expression, the public express their feelings through direct expression and folk language.ResultsUsing the methods of literature review, questionnaire survey and mathematical statistics, this paper analyzes the dimension of fan loyalty and constructs the fan loyalty model of sslm football club in Henan Province.ConclusionAccording to the research, fan participation is divided into three dimensions: pleasure participation, symbolic participation and central participation; Product attributes related to the club, such as team performance, star players, head coach and team management, are positively correlated with club fan loyalty; Logo design, stadium, game quality and team tradition are also positively correlated with club fan loyalty; There is a significant positive correlation between fans' attitude loyalty and fans' behavior loyalty. The author believes that club brand communication is an important factor for fans to participate in the development of football clubs. It is necessary for football clubs to strengthen the publicity of fans, let more fans know the real situation of the club, increase the exposure of football clubs and improve the satisfaction of fans. Secondly, the importance of the performance of the club team in the correlation of product related attributes is self-evident. The club needs to constantly improve the performance of the team in the game and win more attention from the outside world. Therefore, the club must actively train star players, select excellent coaches and lead the team to achieve better results. The club needs to strengthen the development of Lenovo products again, which have attributes unrelated to products. The design of club logo, the construction and maintenance of competition venues, the quality of competition and the tradition of the team are the basis of influencing the loyalty of fans. The club needs to continuously strengthen the product research and development of Lenovo's non product related attributes. Work can not only bring economic benefits to the club, but also shape the club's fan culture and further improve the club's fan loyalty. Finally, the club needs to provide a space for fans to communicate: there is a positive correlation between fans' escape, recognition, acceptance, nostalgia, regional glory and fans' loyalty. Let fans find suitable community organizations, form common interests and help improve the loyalty of club fans.AcknowledgementsThis research was supported by the general project of philosophy and Social Sciences Planning of Zhejiang Province (20NDJC184YB), and the Fundamental Research Funds for Zhejiang Provincial Universities and Research Institutes (2021R005).

Emotional approach to fitness club brand design

Public demand in recent decades for healthy lifestyles, improving its quality and preservation of active longevity has found an echo in the form of the dynamic development of the global fitness industry. Our country is no exception and since the 1990's, domestic fitness has made a rapid spurt from zero position: according to the national community of professional participants of sport and fitness industry, fitness in Russia engages regularly up to 7 million people. The paper presents the author's statement of possible scenarios for the development of the fitness industry highlighting the factors that can transform consumer demands in post-covid economy. The hypothesis is put forward that the competitiveness and economic stability of fitness clubs in the medium term will be determined by the level of customer retention rate and by increasing their loyalty, the effective formation of which is possible by stimulating through marketing communications a positive mental and emotional response in target audiences to the potential and actual satisfaction of certain primary biological needs through fitness services. To prove the hypothesis the corresponding methodology of fitness club brand design based on the emotional approach of M. Lindstrom and K. Roberts was developed. Its verification and testing was carried out. The results obtained testify to the correctness of the author's statements and actualize the continuation of research in the field of emotional branding.

Using Machine Learning to Compare the Information Needs and Interactions of Facebook: Taking Six Retail Brands as an Example

This study explores the interactive characteristics of the public, referencing existing data mining methods. This research attempts to develop a community data mining and integration technology to investigate the trends of global retail chain brands. Using social media mining and ensemble learning, it examines key image cues to highlight the various reasons motivating participation by fans. Further, it expands the discussion on image and marketing cues to explore how various social brands induce public participation and the evaluation of information efficiency. This study integrates random decision forests, extreme gradient boost, and adaboost for statistical verification. From 1 January 2011 to 31 December 2019, the studied brands published a total of 25,538 posts. The study combines community information and participation in its research framework. The samples are divided into three categories: retail food brand, retail home improvement brand, and retail warehouse club brand. This research draws on brand image and information cue theory to design the theoretical framework, and then uses behavior response factors for the theoretical integration. This study contributes a model that classifies brand community posts and mines related data to analyze public needs and preferences. More specifically, it proposes a framework with supervised and ensemble learning to classify information users′ behavioral characteristics.

Analysis of the efficiency of financial and economic activities of russian football clubs

Attracting financing and a stable inflow of capital investments for development is one of the most important issues in the framework of a market economy for any sphere, including the professional sports industry. The inflow of sufficient funding depends to a high degree on the investment attractiveness of the object. In addressing these issues, an essential role is played by the assessment of the effectiveness of financial and economic activities, which affects the amount of funds raised from both budgetary and extra-budgetary sources. The identification of the most important performance factors will allow us to direct efforts to maintain their favorable condition, which is the key to the stable development of the sports industry. The conducted analysis showed that with a competent approach, in particular in the issues of popularization of the sport, the league and club brand, customer orientation and the use of the product exclusivity factor, qualified personnel, as well as investment and innovation activity, including in the issue of training sports personnel, the professional sports industry can be considered as an effective investment and advertising tool that can generate income both in monetary form and in the form of image and socially significant effect.

The brand persona of a football manager – the case of Arsène Wenger

PurposeSport is an important economic activity, and understanding the role of teams and managers is necessary, yet managers – specifically their brand personas – have been the subject of limited research. The purpose of this research is to explore the brand persona of a football manager, using Arsène Wenger as a case.Design/methodology/approachDue to the exploratory nature of the study, qualitative methods were used to explore the brand-building activity. Media reports and images that centred on Arsène Wenger's words covering a three-year period were analysed. In total, 1364 articles and 23 images were analysed in NVivo, using both a priori and emergent codes.FindingsThe findings show the construction of the brand persona in three main dimensions pertinent to his role as a manager. The first is the performance in the managerial role in which Arsène Wenger is appointed, the second is associated with the person (including emotions and self-expression) and the third is the context (i.e. football) in which the manager operates.Research limitations/implicationsThe research focused on one manager while he was managing a premier league club and is limited to England.Practical implicationsWhile proposing a theoretical model, this study proposes football clubs understand a manager's persona in relation to the club's brand and the interactive effect. The support of the club on the persona is also indicated.Originality/valueFootball managers have received some research attention, but there has been no analysis of their brand personas. This study expands the understanding of the contribution of the manager to the club brand.

Investigating the delivery of health improvement interventions through professional football club community trusts-strengths and challenges

ObjectivesThis study audits health improvement provision delivered in/by English professional Football Club Community Trusts and reports the strengths and challenges around the implementation of interventions. Study designMulti-methods design: Data were collected through (i) a review of trust websites (n ​= ​72), (ii) an online survey (n ​= ​34/47.2%) and (iii) semi-structured interviews (n ​= ​11/32.3%) with a sub-sample of trust managers. ResultsThe review of websites confirms all trusts provided physical activity-led interventions. The online survey showed most managers were male (n ​= ​23/67.7%) and white British (n ​= ​30/88.2%). Two thirds held management roles, (n ​= ​23/67.6%) and represented Championship (n ​= ​12/35.2%), League 1 (n ​= ​13/38.2%) and League 2 clubs (n ​= ​9/26.5%). Trusts provided physical activity and most provided diet (n ​= ​31/91.2%) as well as smoking (n ​= ​20/58.8%) and alcohol (n ​= ​19/55.9%) interventions. Weight management, (n ​= ​25/73.5%), mental health interventions (n ​= ​28/82.4%) were offered. Trusts provided male-specific (n ​= ​20/58.8%), with fewer providing female-specific interventions (n ​= ​15/44.1%). Most trusts (n ​= ​30/88.2%) evaluated interventions. 80.8% (n ​= ​21/26) used public health guidance for programme design, 69.2% (n ​= ​18/26) delivery, 57.7% (n ​= ​15/26) needs assessment and 50% (n ​= ​13/26) evaluation. Interviews and qualitative reports identified strengths including, using football, the ‘club brand’, ‘meeting health needs’ and ‘working as a strategic collaboration with partners’. Challenges included ‘short-term funding staffing, mainstreaming, and evaluating interventions’. ConclusionFootball Community Trusts deliver interventions, but challenges were encountered when implementing these programmes.

Urban political ecologies of the apple: practices of corporate-led and community-led trade in the London city region

ABSTRACT This article investigates the urban political ecologies of the apple in London city region. As one of the largest cities in Europe, London is a pertinent site to explore the challenges and possibilities of future food systems. The apple is used as a lens to explore the diverging urban political ecologies of corporate-led and community-led food systems. A mixed method qualitative research approach combines a series of semi-structured interviews with stakeholders involved in producing, distributing and trading apples with practice-based ethnographic fieldwork, responding to calls within urban political ecology for more situated and grounded approaches that build new understandings of socio-environmental practices. Research shows diverging practices and biophysical properties of the apple amongst producers supplying multiple retailers and those operating via a community-led trading mechanism, which includes a farmers’ market and fruit and veg box scheme. Fieldwork suggests apple production for multiple retailers is retail-led, placing increasing pressures upon producers. Biophysical properties of the corporate-led apple are becoming increasingly standardised; narrow in terms of varietal range, and; privatised, via the rise of club brand apples. In contrast, fieldwork suggests community-led trade is based upon producer-led, agroecological approaches to production, distribution and trade. Biophysical properties of the community-led apple are context-dependent and diverse in terms of varietal range, quality and size. Community-led trading is identified as a mechanism for scaling agroecology through cultivating community social and ecological relations and producer-led approaches. To become more than marginal, agroecology and community-led trade require enabling policy, planning and legislative frameworks.

The relationship between brand associations and fan behaviours for football teams

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.

Winning the Loyalty Cup: Impact of Symbol-related Brand Elements on Brand Loyalty of Sports Clubs

Extant research in marketing has recognised the importance of branding in sports. Professional sports clubs are considered to be big brands, and fan loyalty is a crucial factor in determining their success. Brand elements are the building blocks of brands and are used by brand managers to create distinct associations in consumers' minds, resulting in brand recall and recognition. This study employs the context of football to explore the relationship between the symbol-related brand elements of a sports club and brand loyalty towards the club. We find that the brand elements, the history of the club, jersey and logo positively influence brand loyalty towards a sports club. The study sheds light on the importance of brand elements for a sports club brand and can help brand managers and sponsors to focus more on investments in brand elements that matter, as opposed to those which do not.

Sport brands' attraction factors and international fans

PurposeThe overall aim of this study is to improve our understanding of the strength of attraction factors of professional football club brands with foreign fans, and of the influence of demographics and individual characteristics on the influence of these factors in the context of sport spectatorship services.Design/methodology/approachThis research was based on a quantitative study surveying 1,160 Chinese fans of English Premier League clubs and its results were produced through exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. They identify the relative importance of 21 organisation– (e.g. star players, charismatic managers, team kits, partnerships and alliances, etc.), market and environment– (e.g. peer influence, TV coverage, etc.), and experience– (e.g. personal bonds, past attendance, etc.) induced service brand attraction points that were categorised into six main factors: star players, on-the-field performance, brand identity, marketing and merchandising, localism and experience.FindingsOrganisation-induced factors are the most important club brand attraction factors for Chinese fans. ANOVA analysis showed that demographic (i.e. gender, age, and education) and individual (i.e. brand identification and loyalty levels) characteristics influence the importance of attraction factors for fans. For instance, fans who had previously supported a different club brand rated the marketing and merchandising dimensions lower, localism higher, on-the-field performance lower and brand identity lower than those who had always supported the same club.Originality/valueThese results emphasise the importance of segmentation when considering consumer attraction to professional sport brands. They also provide specific practical knowledge that is useful when expanding into new foreign markets.

Sales-based Brand Equity as a Performance Driver in ‘The Country of Soccer’

ABSTRACT Despite being the most popular sport in Brazil, soccer suffers from structural problems. Managers working in this reality know little about the factors that determine performance measures in stadiums. Existing research is undertaken according to an economic logic, which attributes importance to a dependent variable only, the total attendance of soccer matches. This article presents an approach that retrieves a sales-based brand equity (SBBE) measure responsible for performance (revenues and proportional demand) in Brazilian soccer stadiums. The methodology involved a process of a canonical regression model with two dependent variables using on-field performance and SBBE as the main drivers of marketing performance. The theoretical assumption underlying the models is the discussion about the multidimensionality of performance and the importance of testing the potential correlation amongst marketing performance variables. The model developed was estimated using all matches of the Premium Division of Brazilian Championship (Série A) held between 2012 and 2017. The main result highlights the power of SBBE as the primary driver of performance in Brazilian stadiums. Corinthians and Flamengo, the two most important Brazilian soccer club brands, exert a positive influence considerably higher than all other competitors.