Reinforcement and revitalisation of a professional sports-team brand: Case study evidence from Germany's Football Bundesliga

As a result of an increasing commercialisation and professionalisation at the juncture of sport and business, it is generally believed that ‘being’ a brand is one of the most important assets of a sportsteam. Given the proliferation of high-profile brand management of sports-teams around the world and massive investment opportunities for powerful people, this paper contributes by extending existing research in sports-team branding, with the aim of analysing the stability and change of brand associations with sports-teams and how they are influenced by financially strong individuals. Using an exploratory in-depth case study focusing on Germany's ‘test tube’ club TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, this longitudinal research reveals that brand associations with a sports-team tend to be volatile and fluctuate temporarily, although some might prove to be stable, depending on the phase of the club brand's lifecycle. Specific to Hoffenheim, the analysis shows that the club was able to capitalise on quick success and build brand equity, and that the brand could be revitalised after subsequent brand resistance and perceived brand erosion. Targeted both at academics and practitioners in the sports management context, the paper addresses essential theoretical issues in branding generally, which are applied to the sporting context specifically. The work thus represents a useful supplement to the growing body of branding literature.