A recent Newslines from sportbusiness.com announced that the Australian Sweeney Report revealed an apparent “drop in interest from the Australian public’s response to their sports stars”. According to the report all but one of the top ten most marketable sporting ‘celebrities’ had dropped in the rankings of public interest, but more on this top 10 later.
The Sweeney Report was shocked by this unexpected drop in interest and drew the conclusion that it must be connected with player’s off-field antics that have led the public to question their endorsement of brands. I read this to mean that they believe public will lose interest in athletes who don’t conduct themselves in a 100% prim and proper fashion when not engaged in their sport.
I think they might be missing the point a bit here… Granted we all love sportsmen and women who excel in their sport but isn’t that just the half of it? We also love a star – somebody who stands out and shows they aren’t just a machine but are also a genuine character who can engage with the public and the media. Then naturally the sponsors will come knocking at their door and it might not always be a smooth ride but the interest will be high.
Take snooker where Ronnie O’Sullivan is undoubtedly the game’s biggest star. He has a gift which has drawn hyperbolic comparisons to Tiger Woods and even Mozart but a major reason for his huge following is his character and moreover his character flaws.
Outside the sporting arena misdemeanours don’t seem to be a barrier to public interest and sponsors either. The Kate Moss cocaine scandal actually resulted in another contract when she starred in the tongue-in-cheek Virgin Mobile advertisement. It would seem that we may occasionally lose patience with our stars but we appreciate that they are human just like us and make their fair share of mistakes.
Back to the Australian public interest; although outside the top ten Shane Warne’s level of interest grew and he is another person who’s well reported off-field antics should land him a mobile phone sponsor!
The one sports star whose interest grew in the top ten was none other than ex-Liverpool player Harry Kewell who has recently landed a deal to front Australian fashion label Politix, maybe it’s an Australian thing but I’m not all that interested, how about you?
By Alex Coulson on July 4th, 2008
Tags: Brand marketing, Sponsorship
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A new report from Datamonitor makes for interesting reading on the same subject. It discerns rising ‘celeb fatigue’ among consumers, and suggests that many brands are overshadowed by the celebrities they endorse as a consequence of failing to underpin campaigns with a strong brand story.