Football Club Brands And How They Relate To Supporters

Let's get real here - investors don't buy football clubs for the fun of it all - they buy football clubs because they believe they can try to turn a profit. And I am establishing this now: football clubs are in fact commercial brands. There is inherent value to supporters in experiencing a football match and as demand for football increases around the world, so does the opportunity to create and commercialize supply.

Yet the idea of football clubs as brands has been, and continues to be met with resistance from supporters as well as some club executives. Sue Bridgewater, Head of Football Research at the University of Liverpool, says that often what is seen as the purity of the game is valued high above the ability of a club to operate as a sustainable business. Further, supporters see themselves as more than just paying customers. But despite this resistance, the fact is undeniable that treating football clubs as brands has become vital to the success of a club - even more so among clubs in the top leagues of the world.

David Aaker, a recognized authority on branding, established the following four characteristics of a commercial brand which I have applied to football clubs and supporters.

Awareness - Awareness of football clubs as brands has grown significantly over the past two plus decades since the formation and commercialization of the Premier League in 1992. The advent of the league’s collective auctioning of television rights has lead to more access to televised matches which means more recognition of clubs by supporters around the globe. But supporter awareness of individual brands is aided by the clubs' brand identity.

Identity - A football club's most identifiable elements are its logo, that is the club's crest, and its representatives, that is players, managers and executives. Take for example rival clubs Everton FC and Liverpool FC. Not only do the clubs have opposing color schemes, crests and mottos, Everton is seen as the "people's club" focusing on community engagement and local history while Liverpool are seen as a commercialized club embracing the global football market.

Perceived Quality - Even assuming supporters of the same brand/club hold the same values such as placement on the league table, perceived quality can still vary. Take Manchester United's title-winning season in '99/'00. Supporters claim they under-performed that year because the previous year they won the treble setting the perceived quality of the brand so high that any usual measure of success would be undervalued by supporters.

Loyalty - Loyalty matters to businesses simply because it costs more money to prospect new business than to retain current business. But given the unique loyalty of football supporters to their chosen brand, they have no viable substitutes available. Because of this, football clubs traditionally take this loyalty for granted. However, marketing has evolved over the last half-century and with it, the importance of relationship-building and high quality fan interactions has risen significantly.

But why should brands worry about a supporter's loyalty knowing there is an insignificant chance of them switching? This will be explored further in my next post, so stay tuned...

The Relationship Between Fan and Football Club

Football (soccer for those across the pond) is emotional. A club wins and the supporters celebrate as if they personally scored the winning goal. A club loses and the supporters wallow in the deepest misery - analyzing defensive mishaps and offensive shortcomings. But win or lose, those supporters remain loyal.

The relationship between a football club and its supporters is a unique one that leading companies from every other industry only wish they could emulate. Football as a consumable is a special mix between product, service and experience. A supporter can buy a club's shirt, subscribe to original content on the club's website and experience a live match at the stadium. Each of these interactions forge a relationship between club and supporter.

Similarly, the supporter himself is a special mix between customer and investor. Supporters spend money on gear, tickets and membership schemes. But they also invest their time and emotions; endless hours spent staying updated on the latest transfers and injuries and bottomless emotions stubbornly defending the club against rival naysayers.

These behavioral mixes constitute the inimitable bond between club and supporter. Yet these behaviors stem from individual attitudes which are not only unique to football, but unique to each individual supporter. One person may support a club because his father, grandfather and great-grandfather supported the club while another may support that same club as a result of the inbound transfer of a favorite player. Attitudes and motivations drive needs that supporters yearn to satisfy.

The following couple of posts will explore in further detail the unique relationship between a football club and its supporters, outlining the similarities and differences between a football club and a commercial brand and the challenges posed to marketers by this distinct relationship.