Beyond the touchline: Football's guide to marketing success

EURO 2024 fever is here! As the excitement of Europe's elite football tournament captivates fans across the globe, there's more to learn from the pitch than just game tactics and stunning goals. The world of football, especially during major events like the European Championship, FIFA World Cup or UEFA club championship is replete with marketing insights. Every four year, watching the beautiful game producing amazing new talent, also gives us hope for the future. From building passionate communities to leveraging star power and creating unforgettable experiences, football's playbook is filled with strategies that can score big in the business world. In this article, we'll explore the game-changing marketing lessons from the world of football, providing you with winning tactics to elevate your brand.

Brand Loyalty & Community Building

Any big football clubs (especially ones that are centuries old) will boast of deeply loyal fans who are their lifelong supporters, regardless of performance. This loyalty is built over time through community engagement, shared experiences, and a strong brand identity. Think of clubs like FC Barcelona, Manchester United, Liverpool FC (and their famous anthem "You'll Never Walk Alone"), or the Boca Juniors fans creating electric atmospheres at La Bombonera stadium. You can also take inspiration from Celtic FC's famously loyal, with strong connections to the club's Irish roots and a commitment to social justice causes or Galatasaray ultra passionate fan bases in Turkey, known for their fervent support and elaborate match-day displays.

The key lesson here for brands is to focus on building a community around their products or services, engaging with customers beyond transactions, and fostering a sense of belonging. That too across generations!

Storytelling and Emotional Connection

Football is full of miraculous stories — underdog victories, legendary players, historic matches—all of that evoke strong emotions, especially when experienced inside stadiums packed with banners, reverberating with songs & chants. Understand that these stories are central to the sport’s appeal. You can have the best product out there, but if you’re not telling stories around it, few of your customers will care.

Notice that not all games are billed to be the best; many games are the proverbial David vs Goliath. So what do they do to build excitement? They find stories to tell about the game. Maybe it’s around a player, a history, a streak, an achievement, something off-field. Anything to make the game matter more than just being a game. And that’s what marketers everywhere should be doing.

Wind back 20 years, when Greece was as good as gold, in the 2004 EURO edition. 2004 was supposed to be the year where everything came together for Portugal. They were the host for Euro 2004, and the "Golden Generation," featuring Luis Figo, Deco, Pauleta, Rui Costa and a young CR7 had a superb chance for glory. Greece had other plans, and they shut down their more talented opponents. Ronaldo had to wait for 12 more years to be a EURO champion. Similarly, the 'young boy from Rosario' lifted the World Cup only at the age of 35, and arguably, there's no bigger testament to the power of sport, and to the impact that Messi has, than the experience of the world seemingly coming together to celebrate his crowning glory.

Star Power and Influencer Marketing

On 18 December 2022, 88,966 spectators packed into Lusail Stadium and close to 1.5 billion around the world watched a pulsating Final between Argentina and France, in the recently concluded FIFA World Cup, Qatar. Lionel Messi and his teammates celebrating the 2022 FIFA World Cup win at Qatar, was liked by over 75.3 million different accounts.

Fan’s appetite for footballers has never been greater. A combination of access through social media and young fans choosing to follow players over teams,?as shown by the fluctuations in social followings after high-profile transfers like Lionel Messi to Paris Saint-Germain or Cristiano Ronaldo to Manchester United meant that players find themselves being a key source of entertainment (and business), both on and off the pitch - which proves that 'personality' is the secret social sauce.

When Cristiano Ronaldo removed two Coca-Cola bottles out of the camera frame during a EURO 2020 news conference, Coca-Cola saw its share price drop by 1.6% to $55.22, coinciding with a $4 billion drop in the market value of the American drink giant.

Superstars can make or break your brand!

Key lesson here is to partner with influencers or celebrities who align with your brand values to reach a broader audience and leverage their influence to boost your brand’s visibility.

Data-Driven Decision Making & Social Media

The whole world can see how technology is transforming the game of football on the pitch, whether through analytics-driven player performance improvement or (sometimes controversially) VAR precision. But what’s much less understood is the power of data and technology to enhance the experience for those key stakeholders: the fans.

Supporters don’t want blanket emails and promotions; they’re hungry for news, updates and posts that interest them, something to fuel their imagination before let's say a Manchester derby! Through detailed data segmentation, teams can discover an individual digital preferences and priorities; clubs can then choose to target certain fans for exclusive merchandise promotions, VIP experiences, player interviews or match highlights, formatted in the way they like to watch. The possibilities are enormous.

For sports, it isn’t just watching a game, it’s playing pickup ball, it’s betting, it’s fantasy leagues, it’s opportunities to get together with friends for parties. Marketers need to find a way for their audience to both identify with and interact with the brand.

Final whistle

In conclusion, the world of football offers invaluable lessons for marketers aiming to build and sustain strong brand loyalty. The unwavering support of fans, be it for their national teams or local clubs, underscores the importance of community building, emotional connection, and consistent engagement. Whether it's through leveraging star power, crafting compelling narratives, or embracing innovation, the principles gleaned from football's biggest clubs can lead to marketing victories - by simply creating fans!