Investigating the Role of Fan- Team Identification in the Sponsorship Consequences in Professional Football League of Iran

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Associate Professor of Sport Management, Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Kerman, Iran

2 MA of Sport Management, Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Kerman, Iran

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of the current study was to provide a modelincludingthe effect of fan-team identification on the sponsorship consequences in professional football league of Iran.
Method: The research was a descriptive–survey and a field study. The research tool was a combination of researcher developed questionnaire (Sponsorship consequences questionnaire with12items) as well as Mael and Ashforth (1992) Fan-team identification questionnairewiththree items. The research population was football fans in Professional Football League in Iran. 241 football fans were randomly investigated at the selected stadiums. The reliability forsponsorship consequences questionnaire and Fan-team identification questionnaire was found to be 0.83 and 0.88 respectivelybased on Cronbach’s alpha.Moreover, the validity of the tool was verified by conducting face, content, and structural validity. SPSS18 and Smart PLS as well as Structural Equations Modeling (SEM) approach were used for data analysis.
Results: Findings demonstrated that "fan-team identification" had a positive and significant effect on "Sponsor recognition"(β= 0.544, t= 7.447), "Positive attitude toward sponsors" (β= 0.495, t= 6.962),"Financial support of sponsors"(β= 0.461, t= 5.939),and "Satisfaction with sponsors" (β= 0.361, t= 3.05),among football fans. In other words, strengthening the fan-team identification level can improve the sponsorship consequences in Professional Football League in Iran.
Conclusion: According to the importance of fan-team identification in sponsorship consequences, sport marketers as well as corporates that are active in sport events, will be able to be more efficient in sport context by concentrating on identification concept.
 

Keywords

References

  1. References

    1. Abrams, D., & Hogg, M. A. (1990). An introduction to the social identity approach. Social identity theory: Constructive and critical advances, 1-9.
    2. AlipourNadinluie, Z., nazarian, A., keshavarz, L. (2021). Providing a Revenue Model for Hosting Sports Events. Journal of New Studies in Sport Management, 2(1), 111-125.
    3. Ashforth, B. E., &Mael, F. (1989). Social identity theory and the organization. Academy of management review, 14(1), 20-39.
    4. Chin, W. W. (2010). How to write up and report PLS analyses. In Handbook of Partial Least Squares’. (Eds VV Esposito, WW Chin, J Henseler and H Wang), 655–690.
    5. Cook, D., Biscaia, R., Papadas, K., Simkin, L., & Carter, L. (2021). The creation of shared value in the major sport event ecosystem: understanding the role of sponsors and hosts. European Sport Management Quarterly, 1-22.
    6. Daigo, E., & Filo, K. (2021). Exploring the value sponsors co-create at a charity sport event: a multiple stakeholder perspective of sport value. Sport Management Review, 1-23.
    7. Demirel, A., Fink, J., &McKelvey, S. (2018). An examination of employees' response to sponsorship: The role of team identification. Sport Marketing Quarterly, 27(2), 67-81.
    8. Ehsani, M., Fallahi, A., Kuzehchian, H., &Khabiri, M. (2016). Sponsorship for Iran Football Pro-League from the Viewpoints of Sponsor Companies. Sport Physiology & Management Investigations, 8(4), 9-22.
    9. Fechner, D., Filo, K., Reid, S., & Cameron, R. (2021). Charity sport event sponsorship as value creation strategy: An event participant perspective. Journal of Sport Management, 36(1), 68-81.
    10. Fisher, R. J., & Wakefield, K. (1998). Factors leading to group identification: A field study of winners and losers. Psychology & Marketing, 15(1), 23-40.
    11. Giakoni-Ramírez, F., Duclos-Bastías, D., &Schlüter, F. (2021). Sponsoring esports strategies: brand image and attraction sponsors. Turkish Online Journal of Qualitative Inquiry, 12(10), 2137-2155.
    12. Gwinner, K., & Swanson, S. R. (2003). A model of fan identification: Antecedents and sponsorship outcomes. Journal of services marketing, 17(3), 275-294.
    13. Hair, J. F., Hult, G. T. M., Ringle, C. M., &Sarstedt, M. (2016). A Primer on Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). SAGE Publications.
    14. Hamidi, M. (2008). Management of sport events and tournaments, 9th Ed, Tehran: Bamdadketab.
    15. Hazari, S. (2018). Investigating social media consumption, sports enthusiasm, and gender on sponsorship outcomes in the context of Rio Olympics. International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship, 19(4), 396-414.
    16. Henseler, J., Wilson, B., Götz, O., &Hautvast, C. (2007). Investigating the moderating role of fit on sports sponsorship and brand equity. International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship, 8(4), 34-42.
    17. Hoek, J., Gendall, P., & Sanders, J. L. (1993). Sponsorship management and evaluation: Are managers' assumptions justified? Journal of Promotion Management, 1(4), 53-66.
    18. Jaberi, A., SoltanHosseini, M., Nederian, M., &Khazaei Pool, J. (2014). Providing a model for developing football teams’ brand loyalty of pro league in IRAN by applying SEM. Journal of Sport Management, 6(3), 475-492.
    19. Kim, S., &Manoli, A. E. (2022). From horizontal to vertical relationships: how online community identification fosters sport fans’ team identification and behavioural intentions. International Journal of Sports Marketing and Sponsorship, (ahead-of-print).
    20. Kline, R. B. (2015). Principles and practice of structural equation modeling. Guilford publications: New York, USA.
    21. Koronios, K., Vrontis, D., & Thrassou, A. (2021). Strategic sport sponsorship management–A scale development andvalidation. Journal of Business Research, 130, 295-307.
    22. Lacey, R., Close, A. G., & Finney, R. Z. (2010). The pivotal roles of product knowledge and corporate social responsibility in event sponsorship effectiveness. Journal of Business Research, 63(11), 1222-1228.
    23. Lascu, D. N., Giese, T. D., Toolan, C., Guehring, B., & Mercer, J. (1995). Sport involvement: A relevant individual difference factor in spectator sports. Sport Marketing Quarterly, 4, 41-46.
    24. Lee, J. K. (2021). The effects of team identification on consumer purchase intention in sports influencer marketing: The mediation effect of ad content value moderated by sports influencer credibility. Cogent Business & Management, 8(1), 1957073.
    25. Mael, F., &Ashforth, B. E. (1992). Alumni and their alma mater: A partial test of the reformulated model of organizational identification. Journal of organizational Behavior, 13(2), 103-123.
    26. McDonald, C. (1991). Sponsorship and the image of the sponsor. European Journal of marketing, 25(11), 32-38.
    27. Miri, S., Jaberi, A., GhahremanTabrizi, K. (2022). The Partial Role of SERVQUAL Dimensions in the Brand Positioning of Persepolis and Esteghlal Football Teams. Sport Management Journal, 14(1). (In press)
    28. Oliver, R. L. (2014). Emotional expression in the satisfaction response. In Satisfaction: A behavioral perspective on the consumer (pp. 336-373). Routledge.
    29. Pope, N. &Turco, D. (2001) Sport and Event Marketing. Sydney, NSW: Irwin/McGraw Hill.
    30. Rezaei, M., Sharifian, E. (2021). Assessing the Brand Equity of Majid Brand in Comparison with Nike from the Perspective of Iranian Consumers. Journal of New Studies in Sport Management, 2(2), 192-201.
    31. Silva, A. (2022). Team identification and sponsors’ altruistic motives on the effectiveness of professional soccer sponsorship. Managing Sport and Leisure, 1-22.
    32. SoltanHoseini, M., Alidostghahfarrokhi, E., Shabanibahar, G., &Rajabi, M. (2012). Investigation of attitudes of managers in private companies towards sport sponsorship as an advertising tool. Journal of Sport Management, 4(12), 23-36.
    33. Speed, R., & Thompson, P. (2000). Determinants of sports sponsorship response. Journal of the academy of marketing science, 28(2), 226-238.
    34. Stipp, H., &Schiavone, N. P. (1996). Modeling the impact of Olympic sponsorship on corporate image. Journal of Advertising Research, 36(4), 22-28.
    35. Sutton, W. A., McDonald, M. A., Milne, G. R., &Cimperman, J. (1997). Creating and fostering fan identification in professional sports. Sport marketing quarterly, 6(1), 15-22.
    36. Takamatsu, S. (2022). The relationship between sponsorship objectives and sport team reputation among sponsor companies: An exploratory study focusing on sponsors of a Japanese professional women’s volleyball club. Journal of Global Scholars of Marketing Science, 32(2), 252-268.
    37. Thomas, O., Kucza, G., & Schuppisser, S. (2022). Can Sports Sponsorship Affect Consumers’ Motivation for Sports Consumption? Journal of Promotion Management, 28(7), 893-922.
    38. Tsordia, C., Apostolopoulou, A., & Papadimitriou, D. (2021). Does team identification of satellite fans influence brand-related sponsorship outcomes? What we learned from Manchester United supporters in Malaysia. Journal of Strategic Marketing, 1-19. (In press)
    39. Turco, D. M. (1994). Event sponsorship: Effects on consumer brand loyalty and consumption. Sport Marketing Quarterly, 3(3), 35-37.
    40. Wann, D. L., & Branscombe, N. R. (1993). Sports fans: Measuring degree of identification with their team. International Journal of Sport Psychology, 24(1), 1–17
    41. Zepf, B. (2008). Sport sponsorship as an internal marketing tool: employees' sponsorship assessments and their effect on job attitudes. The Florida State University.
Research in Sport Management and Marketing
Volume 3, Issue 4
October 2022
Pages 14-28

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics