1

Building a Brand Lessons for a Major League Soccer

Franchise

Michael Courtney

Coventry University

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DECLARATION OF ORIGINALITY

&

COPYRIGHT ACKNOWLEDGMENT

DISSERTATION TITLE: Building a Brand: Lessons for a Major League Soccer

Franchise

STUDENT’S NAME & I.D.: Michael Courtney 4323093

COURSE OF STUDY: BA (Hons) Sport Marketing

Declaration of Originality

This project is all my own work and has not been copied in part or in whole from any other

source except where duly acknowledged. As such, all use of previously published work (from

books, journals, magazines, internet sites etc.) has been cited within the main report and

fully referenced as an item in the List of References/Bibliography

Copyright Acknowledgment

I acknowledge that the copyright of this Project belongs to Coventry University

Signed by the student: Michael Courtney

Date: 24/04/16

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Acknowledgements

Firstly, I would like to thank all of my family for providing their love and support throughout my time

at University, especially my Mum and my brothers.

To my girlfriend Emilie, thank you for being there every step of the way and showing me unwavering

support through every challenge I face.

To my housemates Adam and Dan, thank you for being legends.

Thanks to Coventry University and in particular #TeamSEM for providing me with an excellent

platform to produce this study.

And, finally, to Samantha Roberts. Thank you for absolutely everything you’ve done to guide me

through this process. Your support has been outstanding throughout and you have constantly driven

me to push myself and achieve more. Once again, thank you.

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Abstract The purpose of this dissertation is to evaluate the brand building strategies used by Major League

Soccer Franchises. Using secondary data, the results of this study will provide new franchises with

the guidelines for brand success in an increasingly competitive US sporting market. The branding

strategies of New York City FC, Seattle Sounders FC and LA Galaxy FC have been analysed through

the use of a newly proposed Brand Strength Index in order to provide these recommendations.

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Table of Contents Acknowledgements iv

Abstract v

Table of Contents vi

List of Tables viii

List of Figures ix

1. Introduction 1

1.1. Chapter Overview 1

1.2. Major League Soccer, The Emerging Brute 1

1.3. Research Aims & Objectives 2

1.4. Overview of Research Methodology 3

1.5. Structure of the Dissertation 3

1.6. Conclusion 4

2. Literature Review 5

2.1. Chapter Overview 5

2.2. Branding as an Area of Research 5

2.2.1. Defining a Brand/Branding 6

2.3. Branding in Sport 9

2.4. Branding in Team Sport 11

2.5. Branding in US Soccer Franchises 13

2.6. Conclusion 14

3. Methodology 16

3.1. Chapter Overview 16

3.2. Research Design 16

3.3. Case Study Design 16

3.4. Methodological Considerations 16

3.5. Conclusion 16

4. Discussion 19

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4.1. Chapter Overview 19

4.2. Major League Soccer in a Competitive North American Market 19

4.3. LA Galaxy: Adulthood 21

4.4. Seattle Sounders: Adolescence 23

4.5. New York City FC: Infancy 25

4.6. Lessons for a Major League Soccer Franchise 27

5. Conclusion & Recommendations 30

5.1. Chapter Overview 30

5.2. Recommendations for an Emerging Major League Soccer Franchise 30

5.3. Research Conclusions and Future Direction.

References xxxiv

Appendices xli

A. Major League Soccer xli

A.1. Maps of MLS teams xli

A.2. Evolution of MLS logo xli

A.3. Evolution of Dallas Stars Logo xlii

A.4. Average Attendance Table xlii

A.5. Most Sold Player Shirts 2015 xliii

B. LA Galaxy xliv

B.1. MLS Support Map xliv

B.2. Player Acquisition Chart xliv

B.3. Brand Evolution xlv

C. Seattle Sounders xlvi

C.1. Crest & Kit Comparison with Seattle Seahawks xlvi

D. New York City FC xlvii

D.1. Crest xlvii

D.2. City Football Group Teams xlvii

E. Frameworks xlviii

E.1. LA Galaxy BSI xlviii

E.2. Seattle Sounders BSI xlviii

E.3. New York City BSI xlix

E.4. Brand Equity Hierarchy xlix

viii

List of Tables

Table 2.1: Defining a Brand/Branding 7

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List of Figures Figure 4.1. Brand Strength Index 28

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One

Introduction 1.1 Chapter Overview

This research analyses and evaluates past strategies that have been implemented in

order to facilitate the growing of a franchise’s brand and provides recommendations on

how these strategies can be altered, tweaked, combined or applied in order to facilitate

the growth of an emerging Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise’s brand. The purpose of

this chapter is to examine the relative background of this research and deliver purpose

for its emphasis. The importance of branding is underlined and deliberated. The aims

and objectives of this study are highlighted and the application of the theoretical and

methodological structures is detailed. The chapter closes with a demonstration of the

structure of this paper.

1.2 Major League Soccer, The Emerging Brute

The MLS, as a league, and all the clubs participating, have great desire to grow, both in

terms of the United States and on a global scale. This is evident in a recent statement

from MLS commissioner Don Garber, who expresses the thriving thirst for expansion

that all stakeholders possess:

“There is no shortage of demand for MLS expansion teams, and we believe the opportunity

exists to grow beyond our current plans. We will evaluate the possibility of growing the

league to 28 teams and establish a process and timeline.”

MLS Soccer (2015)

With the high level of expansion imminent across all levels in the MLS, the importance,

significance and timing of this research is apparent. With the huge probability of another

8 teams being added to the current total of 20 over the next few years, branding will be

of key importance in providing competitive advantage to these new additions.

This study will answer the fundamental research question: What strategies should an

emerging MLS franchise use to establish and develop a brand? With the use of

literature, this study examines the significance of branding in the sport industry,

focusing on branding as an essential focal point in attempts to communicate ever

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complex and intangible messages (Davis, 2000; Goodchild and Callow, 2001) rather than

the idea that branding ‘only works on cattle’ and is based on an old-fashioned and

invalid endeavour, manipulating and controlling consumers' unconscious (Baskin

2008).” In the building of a new franchise, success on a local and global scale comes

down to high fan loyalty, which has direct correlation with strong brand image (Bauer,

Sauer and Exler 2008). The management of strategies involving brand image and

overall equity are discussed, and branding is underlined as a key factor in the success of

an emerging franchise.

To avoid early demise, franchises must implicate strategies not only to overcome

obstacles, but to also grow market share and stability through creating their own

competitive advantage. Brand image, personality, loyalty, awareness, identity and

associations are qualities that distinguish brand equity, which in itself is a main resource

to a company (Rosner & Shropshire 2004). Not only does brand equity play a huge part

in helping teething problems in early stages of the life cycle (Aaker 1991), these

resources also feed into the companies capabilities, meaning they are a main source of

competitive advantage as well (Zack 1999).

1.3 Research Aims & Objectives

In order to answer the principal research question - What strategies should an

emerging MLS franchise use to establish and develop a brand? – two very clear aims

have been set out. Firstly, fundamental to the success of this study, the stand out brand

strategies of relevant US sports franchises, both past and present, will be analysed.

Secondly, a critical evaluation of how a new franchise could exploit these strategies in

order to establish a successful brand of their own will be carried out. To assist the

analysis and critical evaluation of said brand strategies, numerous objectives have been

recognised. The research objectives of this study are:

To define a brand through the use of literature

To identify factors that contribute to a brand strategy

To analyse past strategies used by US (United States) sports franchises

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To examine the strategies that have proven successful

To identify and explore the factors that contribute towards a successful

franchise brand in sport

1.4 Overview of Research Methodology

This study adopts a single embedded case study design, using US sport franchises and

soccer teams within MLS as its primary focus. A cross case comparison of different

franchises is conducted in order to make clear recommendations for MLS teams trying

to achieve a high level of brand equity. A single embedded case study, defined by Yin

(2003) as a case study containing more than one sub-unit of analysis.

1.5 Structure of the Dissertation

There are five integral chapters to this research that will contribute towards the

answering of the research question; Introduction, Literature Review, Methodology,

Discussion and Conclusion. Succeeding the introduction to this research, the residual

chapters of this study will define, analyse and evaluate a specific area of literature;

discuss methodological decrees for this exploration; and display and inspect the findings

of this research.

Chapter Two deliberates the theoretical foundation of this study, stressing key notions

that will impact the research. Branding will be defined and critically reviewed through

the use of appropriate literature, providing vision and focus for the analysis of data. In

Chapter Three, methodological reasoning for this study is provided; including the

philosophical perspective of the researcher and the purpose for the layout of each stage

of the process concerning collecting relevant data is cited. Significant discoveries found

in the preliminary stages of the study are shown and their importance in aiding the aims

and objectives of the research are assessed. Chapter Four provides the findings of this

research; structured in a single-embedded case study designed to analyse the successful

strategies deployed by US sports franchises. Significant factors and similarities between

these franchises, which play a role in success, are analysed through the use of an in-

depth cross-case analysis. Succeeding this, Chapter Five concludes the findings of the

study and provides recommendations for the brand strategies of emerging MLS

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franchises.

1.6 Conclusion

Embracing a modern approach to branding and viewing competitive advantage as an

essential catalyst in the successful emergence of a franchise, this research provides

major contributions to both academic theory and real world application by determining

the factors that contribute towards high brand equity and discussing the amalgamation

of these factors into a strategy that produces prosperous results. The emphasis of this

research provides the opportunity to contribute toward sport marketing literature as

well as the broader academic field of branding, due to the findings being applicable to

not just MLS franchises or general sports teams; a wide range of companies in a vast

array of industries are also able to learn from the outcomes.

This chapter has aimed to introduce the contextual background of the study and provide

a justification for its emphasis. The aims and objectives of the research have been clearly

represented and the methodological design has been underlined. The following chapter

showcases the theoretical foundation of which this research is made up by critically

reviewing and analysing literature surrounding branding.

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Two

Literature Review

2.1. Chapter Overview

Chapter One of this study has highlighted and discussed the research question,

presenting a contextual background and reinforcing the need for this research.

Following on from this, Chapter Two will develop a theoretical body of appropriate

literature that will support the research, underlining key facets and evaluating their

importance to the research. The four areas of literature this study focuses on are

branding, branding in sport, branding in team sport and branding in US soccer

franchises. A critical analysis of these areas will provide a wide scope of justified

theoretical background to the study.

2.2. Branding as an Area of Research

There is a long history of brands identifying the derivation of a product and in

distinguishing one product from another. For example, in Ancient Egypt, brick-makers

would imprint their bricks using unique symbols and members of trade societies in

Europe would use a “trademark” on their products in order to ensure quality for their

customers, and to claim legal protection (Gross 2015). Although these methods had

been around for a long time, the idea of “brand/ing” didn’t come to prominence until the

16th century. Farmers in the “Wild West” would mark their cows by branding the sign

(or logo) of the owner onto the animals’ fur (Keller 2008). Also, Whiskey Distilleries had

the habit of burning the name of the producer onto each barrel in order to identify who

made the produce and avoid it being swapped with cheaper alternatives (Farquhar

1990). Branding as we know it today, a marketing tool, began to evolve in the 20th

century when manufacturers moved on from simply selling commodities to marketing

branded products and reaping the benefits of the reputation the brands were building

(Aaker 1991).

The importance of brand management highlighted within literature dates back to 1939,

when Domizlaff (1939) suggested that branding techniques should facilitate the

development of the relationship between the consumer and the product, which should

be built on trust. To this day researchers have built on from previous two-dimensional

approaches based around image; and an identity-based brand management standpoint

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has been developed by academics such as Meffert and Burmann (1996), Aaker (1996)

and Kapferer (1992). This approach is a development of the strictly image-based

methodology in that it accounts for the internal view point of a business, as the beholder

of the brand, as well as the external viewpoint of the consumers who possess an image

of that brand in their minds. This means the internal stakeholders’ (employees, etc.)

views are taken into account, as they are the brand identity; as well as the perceptions of

external stakeholders’ (suppliers, consumers, etc.), as this is the brand image (De

Chernatony 2006). Brand identity echoes the characteristic qualities and persona of a

brand and is actively created by internal assets of a company, such as staff and

managers. The shared ethics, values, morals, objectives, behaviour and ethos all

contribute towards a company’s brand identity (Van Riel & Balmer 1997) . By

exemplifying what the brand does and does not represent, the identity-based approach

leads companies toward a coherent brand that is clearly and concisely understood by

consumers (De Chernatony & Harris 2000); which, when viewed from the perception of

the consumer, is brand image.

2.2.1 Defining a Brand/Branding

Throughout the ages, as the ideology and uses of a brand has evolved, so has the

complexity of definitions. What started off as a way of marking which cow

belongs to which owner (Keller 2008), has gone on to evolve through time from

being a symbol of a specific entity (Aaker 1991) to now being widely recognised

as “a series of functional and emotional values that promise a certain experience to

its stakeholders (De Chernatony, Drury & Segal-Horn 2004: 1).” Although such

advancements in the ideology and power of a brand have been widely accepted,

there is still skepticism; Baskin (2008) suggests the importance of branding for a

business is overrated and that the ideology should have remained as just an act

of marking cattle. With cynicism surrounding the power of branding, the need

for convincing evidence of brand based equity has led to the development of a

vast array of brand-equity models (Burmann, Jost-Benz & Riley 2008). Over 300

models including different definitions and contrasting perspectives on brand

equity have been published (Amirkhizi 2005), contributing to confusion as to a

clear definition of branding. A number of branding definitions (See Table 2.1)

have been gathered to demonstrate the wide scope of classification used by

academics.

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Table 2.1: Defining a Brand/Branding

Definition Author(s) (Year)

“The distinguishing name or symbol (such as

logo, trademark or packaging design) intended

to identify the goods or services of either one

seller or a group of sellers and to differentiate

those goods and services from those of

competitors”

Aaker (1996: 7)

“A brand is a distinct product, service, or

business, and branding is the act of impressing a

product, service, or business on a consumer, or

set of consumers.”

Vaid & Campbell (2003: 2)

‘‘Brand is a name given to a product or service

from a specific source. Used in this sense

‘’brand’’ is similar to the current meaning of the

word ’trademark’.’’

McLaughlin (2011: 1)

“A brand is a name, term, sign, symbol, or

design, or a combination of these, that identifies

the maker or seller of a product or service”

Armstrong & Kotler (2010: 255)

“A brand can be defined as a series of functional

and emotional values that promise a certain

experience to its stakeholders”

De Chernatony, Drury & Segal-Horn (2004: 1)

“consumers’ perception of the offering – how it

performs, how it looks, how it makes one feel,

what message it sends”

Rayport & Jaworksi (2001: 5)

“A brand is a customer experience represented

by a collection of images and ideas; often, it

refers to a symbol such as a name, logo, slogan,

and design scheme. Brand recognition and

other reactions are created by the accumulation

of experiences with the specific product or

service, both directly relating to its use, and

through the influence of advertising, design, and

media commentary”

American Marketing Association (2015)

“Branding is when that idea or image is Brick Marketing (2015)

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marketed so that it is recognizable by more and

more people, and identified with a certain

service or product when there are many other

companies offering the same service or product”

“Branding is about understanding the brand

values and positioning, and developing an

expression across the various media”

Baldwin, J & Davis, M. (2006: 8)

“A brand is mainly a differentiation device: the

living memory and the future of its products.”

Kapferer (1997)

An evident theme throughout the table shows that a brand has the power of

providing an entity with uniqueness; a distinct attribute that provides

differentiation within a market or industry.

A clear observation drawn from these classifications shows that earlier

definitions of branding, such as Aaker (1996) and Kapferer (1997), seem to

focus solely on the differentiation that possessing a brand can provide. Later

definitions from Rayport & Jaworksi (2001: 5) and Vaid & Campbell (2003: 2)

have advanced on the traditional understanding and have taken external

stakeholders’ views and emotions into account. The definitions are based around

the idea of how a brand is perceived by its consumers and how it makes them

feel.

This research adopts the definition of branding provided by De Chernatony,

Drury and Segal-Horn (2004: 1) in that soccer teams, more so than the average

corporate business, consist of an array of practical and emotional values that

propose a certain experience to its stakeholders.

The objectives set as a basis for branding strategy include building

differentiation from other brands; Muncy (1996: 411) states that “differentiation

is regarded as the lifeblood of successful brand marketing and advertising.” As well

as that, a brand strategy also helps create awareness, reputation and

prominence in the marketplace (Weitz & Wensley 2002). Identifying these

objectives is important to the study as the consideration of a successful brand

must be made clear in order to provide a valid answer to the research question.

Keller (2002: 152) suggests that “brand strength may reflect macro brand

considerations such as market leadership or market share position, as well as more

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micro brand considerations such as consumer familiarity, knowledge, preferences,

or loyalty.” This opinion contrasts in complexity in comparison to Chuah (2008:

11) who believes a successful brand is one that “meets an additional emotional

need.” This study will interpret success by understanding a combination of these

two interpretations, in that a successful soccer team utilizes the high level of

emotion of soccer fans in order to gain on macro and micro brand

considerations.

2.3. Branding in Sport

According to Petrović, Milovanović and Desbordes (2015), today’s global sports industry

is worth between $350 Billion and $450 Billion. Soccer remains the king of all sports;

global revenues equal $20 Billion yearly. In Europe alone, soccer is a $16 Billion

business, with the five biggest leagues accounting for half of the market and the top 20

teams comprising roughly one-quarter of the market; this figure highlights the power

that top brands possess in sport. Much of this success is down to that fact that strong

service brands, namely sports brands, are built by making an emotional connection with

their audience. This connection is achieved by brands that reflect customers’ core

values; that capture and communicate values that customers’ hold dear (Berry 2000:

134). This perception is reiterated in a similar sense by Arai, Jae Ko and Kaplanidou

(2013), who state that the ‘attractive appearance’ and ‘marketable lifestyle’ of an athlete

will contribute towards strong brand equity. Auto racing driver Danica Patrick and

Tennis player Roger Federer, famed for their ‘sexy’ brand image, both signed for

marketing agency IMG in order to further develop their brands and gain a more

wholesome image through improved communication of their lifestyle (Yahoo 2009; SAB

2007). The two factors mentioned are built on perception, and the latter is linked to

personality, a feature that consumers can relate to emotionally (Aaker 1997).

Sports are typically categorized by high levels of consumer commitment and the

aforementioned emotional involvement (Sutton et al. 1997). This commitment is

generally referred to as brand or fan loyalty. Gladden and Funk (2004) state that brand

loyalty is important to sports entities for two reasons; firstly, brand loyalty ensures a

more stable following even when the core product’s performance falters (e.g. a Formula

One driver loses their race). Secondly, brand loyalty creates opportunity for product

extensions beyond the core product to be introduced. New products such as athlete or

team related merchandising can be used to create additional revenue streams, even

across geographical boundaries.

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As aforementioned, Aaker (1997) suggests that brand personality can increase the

consumers’ connection with a brand. Donavan et al. (2005) also found that individuals’

personality traits influence their identification and loyalty with a sports entity. Whilst

many researchers argue that competitive balance is a key factor for the attractiveness of

a certain athlete, team or league, as it guarantees an uncertainty of the outcome of

results (Knowles, Sherony & Haupert 1992; Marques 2002; Rottenberg 1956); other

researchers have found that matching the characteristics of a brand with those of its

endorsers and consumers tend to be the most common influence (Kamins 1990; Lynch

& Schuler 1994). From a social identity theory perspective (Tajfel and Turner, 1985),

individuals may associate brand characteristics with positive aspirational goals that

they can relate to themselves; Carlson, Donavan and Cumiskey (2009) state that

personality types that are wholesome, imaginative, successful, charming and tough will

have a positive effect on the prestige and distinctiveness of a brand. The significance of

certain brand associations is also specified by Aaker (1996), who states that strong

brand equity can be developed through positive brand associations that consumers

attribute to a brand. As well as consumers associating the brand with themselves, brand

association with another company is also recognized to boost consumer engagement

and brand equity; this is commonly known as sponsorship and the results are a

consequence of brand image transfer between the companies (Gwinner & Eaton 1999).

According to Schwarz and Hunter (2008), sponsorship has been an important part of

sport promotion since it was first recorded in the period of Antiquity, over 2700 years

ago.

Earlier classifications seem to only recognise the benefits of a sponsorship agreement

from the point of view of the sponsor, such as Otker (1988: 77) who defines sponsorship

as “(1) buying and (2), exploiting an Association with an event, the team, a group, etc, for

specific marketing (communications) purpose” and Javalgi et al (1994: 48), who state that

it is “The underwriting of a special event to support corporate objectives by enhancing

corporate image, increasing awareness of brands, or directly stimulating sales of products

and services.” As research and knowledge of the subject has grown, these traditional,

transactional views on sponsorship have been evolved to realise the benefit of an

agreement for both parties (Meenaghan 2002), such as Farrelly and Quester (2005: 211)

who describe sponsorship as “a form of exchange between sponsor and the entity it

invests in, with both parties seeking to achieve their own strategic goals .” This study

adopts this definition of sponsorship as it coincides with the ideologies aforementioned

about the relationship between sponsorship and branding and how both the sponsee

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and sponsor can benefit from an association with each other’s image (Gwinner & Eaton

1999).

Keller (1993: 3) defined image as “perceptions about a brand as reflected by the brand

associations held in memory” , “and the transfer of it is acknowledged in academic

literature to be one of the primary reasons for organisations to consider sponsorship as

part of any marketing communications strategy (Gorse 2013: 24).” Although the benefits

of brand association have been highlighted within this study, Buhler and Nufer (2010)

state that while positive image transfer is an integral part of sponsorship, negative

image can be transferred in an identical manner; damaging the sponsor’s image as a

result. Nonetheless, this study focuses on the positives of brand image toward a

successful branding strategy, whilst taking the possible negative connotations in to

consideration.

Image transferral within sponsorship, and particularly within sport, can be twofold; an

example of this would be Formula One team Sauber linking up with Chelsea Football

Club (Autosport 2012). The partnership allowed both cohorts to use the others’

branding in marketing communications, with both entities aiming to capitalise on the

correlation between the two companies’ brand images. In this case, Chelsea paid

sponsorship fees to Sauber as if it were a company aiming at promoting its corporate

brand; of course, a corporate brand is most likely what the management of Chelsea FC

believes their club to be. “The goals that might be pursued by the football club by means of

this partnership are the typical goals of a commercial sponsor: reaching a worldwide

audience to enhance brand awareness and building brand image through transfer of

associations such as excitement, passion for performance, or unique heritage (Gross 2015:

26).” This evidence shows that the “typical sponsor” and “typical sponsee” might not

exist anymore, as the universality of branding progresses (Keller 2008); highlighting the

prominence of branding In sport, and in particular team sport.

2.5. Branding in Team Sport

Branding within team sport is distinct from general branding in sport due to a number

of factors: heightened loyalty from consumers (Sutton et al 1997), a sense of community

amongst fans (Underwood, Bond, & Baer 2001) and the opportunities surrounding

having a home stadium (Rosner & Shropshire 2004).

As aforementioned, and here reiterated by Underwood, Bond & Bear (2001: 2)

“Successful sports team cultivate a distinct brand image and seek to capitalize on the

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oftentimes extreme emotion-laden response of their fans.” Sports fans attain strength and

a sense of identity from their affiliation with a team (Wann & Branscombe 1993). This

point is agreed upon by Ashford and Mael (1989) who describe it as ‘Team

identification’ and define it as the spectators’ perceived connectedness to a team and the

experience of the team’s failings and achievements as one’s own. These fans that are

highly involved with a team can be extremely loyal; their loyalty is long-term,

unwavering, and is supported by time and financial commitments (Sutton et al 1997). As

a result of this, many sports teams have implemented strategies such as heightened

communications through a variety of methods (email, mail, and special ‘limited access’

events) which may enhance and reinforce the degree to which committed consumers

feel more affiliated with the brand and truly part of the team (Rosner & Shropshire

2004). Although these measures are taken in order to increase brand loyalty, “Escalating

player salaries, franchise relocation, and player mobility, however, threaten the special

relationship between fans and sports teams by creating psychological (or real) distance.

(Milne & McDonald 1999: 3).”

This loyalty and emotion towards sports teams unifies otherwise disparate fans; it

makes people volunteer in communities and commit to a team and be as intimate

towards the club as they would be in a romantic relationship (Fisher & Wakefield 1998).

This heightened group identification marks in-group/out-group boundaries, facilitating

the grouping of people into “us” vs. “them” and “we” vs. “they”, which brings a certain

sense of community to sports teams (Underwood, Bond, & Baer 2001). Social

psychological research focused on sport has documented the effects of such strong

group identity (Simons & Taylor 1992). This development of community creates strong

brand-building opportunities within a brand strategy; Schwarz and Hunter (2008: 211)

suggest that “the main goal of community relations is to foster goodwill in the community

and develop a long-term relationship with individuals and the community as a whole”,

whilst Winn and Branscombe (1993) found that these fans being more involved and

invested in the team resulted in an increased probability of higher attendance, a greater

enthusiasm to spend money following the team and a more encouraging, sympathetic

set of expectations from the team. Whilst the benefits of a local, physical community

have been highlighted, Devasagayam and Buff (2008: 2) propose that such a “limited

conceptualization of community may not be congruent with modern technological

advances that render geographical boundaries meaningless and find that sufficient

evidence exists to support the notion that consumption communities are not bound by

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spatial constraints. Communities may be conceived and nurtured in the physical world as

well as the virtual world.”

In this day in age, stadiums are not only part of the physical, local community; with

technological advances, they now attain the capabilities to become part of the virtual

community, engaging consumers worldwide and becoming an ever more fruitful asset to

brand equity (Donnelly 2012). Rosner and Shropshire (2004:189) reiterate the impact a

stadium can have on brand equity with two clear points; “First, those teams that have

more control over the stadium, its ancillary activities and revenue sources are likely to

generate more revenues from the stadium-related extensions. Such enhanced control also

allows for increased marketing activity and consequently increased brand awareness.

Second, the stadium tradition and design may play an important part in the development

of brand equity. Certain stadiums possess significant histories, whereas others are more

generic. A sport consumer’s brand associations may be enhanced when the stadium itself

plays a part in the attending or viewing experience.” These sentiments are agreed upon

by numerous studies that have shown that an appealing stadium atmosphere, heritage

and status are some of the most important motives for spectators to attend an event,

and therefore must be utilised as an indispensable asset within a sports team’s brand

strategy (Bauer, Sauer & Exler 2005; Holt 1995; Wakefield & Blodgett 1999; Wann &

Wilson 1999).

2.6. Branding in US Soccer Franchises

As highlighted by Aaker (1996) and Armstrong and Kotler (2010) in section 2.2.1., logos

are essential for brand recognition. Extensive research put in towards the creation or

development of a brand logo and brand nickname has been a common tactic in both

major and minor US franchises (Rosner & Shropshire 2004). This point stands true in

the case of nearly every MLS franchise, as the young league attempted to establish a

brand (Jensen & Sosa 2008). These logos have been designed in order to reflect the core

values and beliefs of the consumers (see section 2.4) (Berry 2000), with many referring

to the history and tradition of the local market and consumers, due to the effect that has

on fan loyalty, continuity and growth (Passikoff 1997). However, although many teams

have taken measures to enable growth, “It is no secret that soccer in the United States is

an afterthought amongst most sports fans. In terms of viewership and revenue, it is well

behind the traditional ‘Big Three’ of the American sports pantheon of football, baseball

and basketball (Brown 2005).” Part of the reason for this, Jensen and Sosa (2008) claim,

is that although strategies have been implemented to try and gain more loyalty from

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established fans; many potentially rewarding audiences, such as Mexican-Americans,

Hispanics and Chicanos have not yet been engaged by marketing activity.

The failure to engage new consumer audiences may be rectified by a strategy that

involves recruiting star players from big European leagues. This strategy has seen

names like David Beckham, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba, Andrea Pirlo

and David Villa move to the MLS; with clubs’ aims being to benefit from these players’

marketable profiles, which contribute greatly to merchandise sales, brand image

transfer and increased media interest (Desbordes 2007); with the latter being of huge

interest to the MLS and all of the teams involved, as media attention and particularly

television coverage are major factors in assisting the league’s growth (Lopez 2006).

Although this strategy has its benefits, Scott (2011) and Francis (2011) suggest that this

strategy could be a bad case of history of repeating itself. In 1975, Brazilian soccer

player Pele signed for the New York Cosmos in the North American Soccer League

(NASL), and whilst the league saw tremendous success during his playing career, the

league folded in 1984, just 6 years after he’d retired. “Many Europeans equate MLS to its

U.S. predecessor, the NASL, and it is often referred to as a “retirement league”, known for

attracting famous foreign players whose best playing days have passed by offering easy

money (Strutner, Parrish & Nauright 2014).” This negative image of the league may in

due course have an effect, but the acquisition of youthful, talented players from Europe’s

top leagues has helped combat that image; thrusting the growth and reputation of the

league’s brand: The aforementioned MLS Commissioner, Dan Garber has claimed that

“the signing of Sebastian Giovinco was one of the most important and successful signings in

the history of the league. It’s very important for us to have everyone understand that this is

not a retirement league. While there are a handful of guys – Didier Drogba and Steven

Gerrard and Frank Lampard and Andrea Pirlo - who are toward the end of their careers,

Sebastian made this decision in the prime of his career. He made Toronto FC his club of

choice when he had many other options (Toronto Sun 2015).”

2.7. Conclusion

The purpose of this chapter has been to critically review existing research in the field of

branding, delving deeper and transcending through relevant literature involving

branding in sport, branding in team sport and finally branding in US soccer franchises in

an effort to synthesise the literature in order to construct a conceptual background, and

subsequently deliver direction for the data collection phases of this study. This critical

review has acknowledged key gaps in understanding that this study aims to address.

15

The understanding of branding as an integral asset to a company is a well-documented

research area, and this chapter has sought to identify branding in sport as a highly

emotion driven concept that is very much focused around personality and loyalty. In

doing so, this study is built around the definition of branding provided by De

Chernatony, Drury and Segal-Horn (2004: 1) “A brand can be defined as a series of

functional and emotional values that promise a certain experience to its stakeholders.”

In developing a better understanding of branding in US Soccer franchises and, in

particular, the factors and tactics that contribute towards a successful strategy, this

study represents an important contribution to the fields of both brand management and

sport marketing.

This research is based on the argument that a strong, thorough and well-revised brand

strategy can improve the macro factors of a US soccer franchise such as market

leadership and market share position, as well as improving micro factors such as

consumer familiarity, knowledge, preference and loyalty. This study is designed to

evaluate if this is indeed the case, and subsequently provides a critical analysis of each

contributing factor. The findings of this study are presented in Chapter Four.

The following chapter presents the philosophical and methodological contemplations of

this study and key findings from the initial stages of the research process are discussed.

16

Three

Methodology

3.1. Chapter Overview

In Chapter Two, a critical analysis of branding, branding in sport, branding in team sport

and branding in US soccer franchises provided a wide range of justified theoretical

background to the study. Chapter Three highlights the methodological approaches

applied in this study, delivering a rationale for data collection and analysis methods

used, whilst underlining the philosophical standpoint of the researcher. Ethical

reflections for this research are discussed and key initial findings from preliminary

phases of the research process are given.

3.2. Primary Data

Defined as original data that is collected by the researcher for a particular purpose (Hox

& Boeije 2005). Primary data can be collected through the method of either conducting a

survey, an interview or by observing test subjects (Currie 2005). Table 3.1 below

demonstrates the advantages and disadvantages of using primary data.

Table 3.1: Advantages and Disadvantages of Primary Data

Advantages Disadvantages

Data is collected first hand by the

researcher, ensuring more control over

how the information is collected. This

means issues such as the sizing and time

frame of a project can be decided upon

and better planned for.

All data collected must be appropriate and

necessary for the study.

Further data can be collected throughout

the research process.

Not always feasible. Some projects, whilst

potentially offering valuable information, are not within reach for the researcher.

Generally more specific to the research

issue in comparison to secondary data, as

the researcher can create surveys and hold

interviews that are specific to the study

(Kowalczyk 2014).

Primary data can expend many resources

of the researcher, due to primary data

usually requiring high investment in both

time and money. This is often the main

reason for primary data not being utilised

in studies (Ghauri et al 2005).

17

Although the positives of conducting primary research are evident, it will not be utilised

in this study. Primary data is well documented to require great investment from the

researcher and due to time and money constraints, secondary data is the collection

method being implemented.

3.3. Secondary Data

This is defined as data that has been collected by others, originally attained for a

different purpose (Frankfort-Nachmias & Nachmias 1992). The secondary data sources

that will be utilised in this study will be previous historical data, official statistics,

government reports, officially recognised statistics and previous research. The

advantages and disadvantages of using this data collection method have been discussed

in the table below, to emphasise why secondary data is best suited for this study.

Table 3.2: Advantages and Disadvantages of Secondary Data

Advantages Disadvantages

Provides comparative and relative data for

the study (Saunders et al 1997).

Lack of control over the data, which means

it must be checked thoroughly in order to

make sure of the quality, reliability and

validity. (Saunders et al 1997).

Delivers data that is longer lasting and

attainable in many forms that can be found

easily by others (Denscombe 2007).

Will have been collected for a particular

purpose, which may differ from the

researcher’s research question or

objectives, which may subtract from

relevance (Denscombe 2007).

Requires fewer resources, in particular

time and money (Cowton 1998). A

Considerably less expensive and time

consuming method compared to collecting

primary data.

The aforementioned time and money constraints of this study, along with the other

benefits mentioned by Saunders et al (1997), Denscombe (2007) and Cowton (1998)

reinforce the notion that Secondary data is the ideal data collection method for this study.

3.4. Case Study Design

18

As mentioned in Chapter 1.4, this study adopts a single-embedded case study design.

Merriam (1998) proposes that utilising multiple cases in a study makes the findings and

understandings more compelling. The reasoning behind selecting a single-embedded

case study rather than a single case study was down to the fact that studying multiple

cases of parallel entities can validate, qualify, or extend the findings that may arise were

there to be only one case. This study is focused on factors of brand equity in Major

League Soccer franchises, whilst drawing from the strategies employed by LA Galaxy,

Seattle Sounders and New York City FC (NYCFC).

Although Hird (2003) was critical of case studies for their paucity of rigor,

representatives and generalisability, Yin (2009: 53) suggests that “the evidence from

multiple cases is often considered more compelling, and the overall study is therefore

considered more robust.” Ritchie and Lewis (2003) agree, and state that case studies

provide a flexible background for numerous data collection methods. In consideration of

this, each team has been chosen due to the stages they are at in the brand life cycle. LA

Galaxy are classed as Adulthood, Seattle Sounders are Adolescence and NYCFC are

infancy. This classification of the teams enables results to be gathered from different age

ranges, perspectives and markets, aiding the robustness, reliability and validity of the

study, whilst eradicating bias due to the cross referencing of multiple unique cases

(Pannucci et al 2011). This research will principally use qualitative data, whilst

integrating elements of quantitative data in order to provide statistical evidence for

findings. The result of incorporating both types of data in this research results in

triangulating the findings, providing more generalisability (Gorse 2013).

3.5. Conclusion

The purpose of this Chapter was to deliver a detailed outline of the methodological

process utilised throughout this research, whilst underlining the philosophical

considerations. It has been established that the primary reason for secondary data being

utilised in this study is largely due to the time and money constraints of the project. The

validity, reliability, generalisability and bias of the study have been discussed, whilst the

decision to utilise both qualitative and quantitative data was established. Chapter Four

presents the main findings and outcomes of the research.

19

Four

Discussion

4.1. Chapter Overview

In Chapter Two, the methodological considerations of this study were identified and

explored. This Chapter provides a cross-case analysis of LA Galaxy, Seattle Sounders and

NYCFC, exploring the strategies these teams have utilised in order to build and grow

their brands, leading to the development of a conceptual model that explains the

relationship between brand strategies and key brand factors.

4.2. Major League Soccer in a Competitive North American Market

The birth of MLS relates back to the 1994 World Cup and started with a promise to The

Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). The United States Soccer

Federation (USSF) agreed that if they were to host the World Cup, they would set up a

professional soccer league. In 1996, the league was inaugurated with just 10 teams,

which were split into Eastern and Western conferences to avoid long travel times. Since

then, the league has added 10 more teams and grown exponentially (See Appendix A1

for map of MLS teams).

In 2014, Howard Handler, Chief Marketing Officer of MLS announced a revamped brand

identity for the league, stating “In the last 18 months, we have introduced new teams, new

soccer-specific stadiums, an eight year, multi-million dollar media rights partnership, and

our owners have made significant investments to sign world-class athletes. Together, these

elements have led to the realization that our current brand is no longer a proper

representation of the league we are and want to become. Our new brand and crest are the

result of an iterative process that has helped us better understand the world in which we

operate in. The outcome is not an evolution, but a revolution. (LA Galaxy 2014).” A

statement that expresses the reactive innovation being applied by MLS, enabling the

brand to grow as the league does whilst providing differentiation from the highly

competitive US sport market. The new logo’s colours pay tribute to the nations MLS

represents: the US and Canada. While the design is intended to say “soccer” without the

literal ball and boot of its predecessor, the flexible nature of the brand will also allow

clubs to adopt the league crest in their own unique colour schemes, reinforcing a

20

focused commitment to put clubs, country and community first (MLS Soccer 2014). See

Appendix A2 for evolution of MLS logo.

MLS uses a playoff system similar to that of the National Basketball Association (NBA);

the top six teams from each division play each other in elimination rounds that

subsequently lead to a final between two teams. As well as using this playoff system

used by other American sports, MLS also adopted their franchising system. This means

MLS and it’s individual teams exist as one single corporate entity. There aren’t many

organic, legacy soccer clubs in the US that possess structural and financial stability, so

MLS had to create a viable infrastructure of teams. In order to maintain the league and

ensure uniform policies, MLS maintains central control over all participating teams. In

essence, a franchise in North American sports is comparable to a franchise in retail or

the fast food industry. For example, there are many KFCs, McDonalds and Subways

around the world that have been purchased with the right to operate as a private owner,

whilst the policies, rules and regulations of the corporate owner are put in place to

ensure a uniform brand.

Sports franchises, like fasts food franchises, are movable. There are many reasons this

may occur, such as issues with finances, lack of support, problems with unsatisfactory

facilities or even just the wishes of the owners. When a franchise relocates, brand

considerations are very important. An example of this would be the National Hockey

League (NHL) team, Minnesota North Stars. In 1993, after two years of poor attendance

and profitability, the team were moved to Dallas and renamed the ‘Dallas Stars’. The

change in name for the team, although very subtle, was very effective. Many Minnesota

fans had always referred to the North Stars as simply ‘the Stars’, so this change in name

and relocation of the team would not alienate them; instead the intention was to retain

the emotional connection between the team and the fans. As well as this, Dallas is a city

located in ‘The Lone Star State’ of Texas; a nickname with powerful connotations and

one that provides a meaningful connection between the franchise and their new city

(See Appendix A3 for evolution of logo). This meant the team was able to substantially

grow their fan base and have enormous support in two major US cities.

It has been established throughout this study that brand identity and differentiation are

key factors in establishing an emotional connection, competitive advantage, brand

loyalty and overall brand equity. These key factors should therefore underpin brand

marketing strategies for MLS franchises in the highly competitive North American

environment in which they operate.

21

4.3. LA Galaxy FC: Adulthood

One of the 10 teams to be inaugurated in the first MLS season in 1996, LA Galaxy have

gone on to become the most successful team in the league’s history; winning the MLS

Cup a record five times. This success has seen the club grow to become the most

supported in the US (See Appendix B1 for map). These achievements have come as part

of a huge rebranding overhaul aimed at international brand growth; and the team’s

global goals were echoed by Tim Leiweke, CEO, who stated “We're not just trying to win

the MLS Cup. We're driven to set a new a tone, a new level and a new platform for this

brand and this team worldwide and internationally (ESPN 2012).”

LA Galaxy have specified the acquisition of international star players as the driving force

behind building their brand. It is through these acquisitions that the club has established

itself as a worldwide brand while winning a record number of MLS championships (See

Appendix B2 for chart expressing La Galaxy’s vision). The re-brand started in 2007 with

the signing of David Beckham. By recruiting the world’s most famous sports star, the

profile of the team was immediately raised. The improvement of their performance on

the pitch was just a minor reason for his recruitment, with brand image transfer playing

a huge role. As aforementioned in Chapter 2.6, the New York Cosmos employed this

strategy with the signing of Pele. To avoid the mistake made by the doomed NASL, LA

Galaxy took measures to closer align their brand with Beckham’s and rebuild a fresh

brand on the foundations of his. In partnership with Adidas (sponsor of both LA Galaxy

and Beckham), the team’s colours and logo were completely revamped. The team’s kit

changed from gold and green to an optic white with navy blue accents on the sides. This

colour scheme was decided upon in a move to emulate Real Madrid (Beckham’s former

team) and their glamourous look, something that reflects the lifestyle and brand of Los

Angeles as a city. The navy blue reflects the ‘space’ theme; assisting the ‘Galaxy’ name

and the new emblem (See Appendix B3 for brand evolution). The revamped crest shows

a quasar shining brightly in a deep blue California sky, with edgings of the colour gold,

honouring the Galaxy’s proud history and tradition in the Golden State. The addition of

the quasar was seminal in the rebranding process, claimed General Manager Alexi Lalas,

“A Quasar is the heart of a galaxy and generates incredible light and energy”, highlighting

the connection between the symbol and the Galaxy; a name originally selected as a

reference to the parlance of LA celebrity, “stars” (Inside SoCal 2007) .This is a focal point

of the brand, attempting to use their heritage in order to build a stronger connection

with the local community, as well as the international market through association with

the world renowned ‘Hollywood’.

22

As well as Beckham, LA Galaxy have made several other signings that have played a role

in the building of their brand, in particular Landon Donovan, Gyasi Zardes and Giovani

Dos Santos. Although the signing of Donovan was in 2005, the strategy behind bringing

him in was one with a long term vision. At the time, Donovan was a young, all-American

forward with experience in Europe and a strong international record. By the time of his

retirement in 2014, Donovan dominated the stats and went on to become 7-time MLS

Most Valuable Player (MVP), leading MLS scorer of all time, leading MLS assister of all

time, leading United States Men’s National Team (USMNT) scorer of all time and leading

USMNT assister of all time, leading to him being regarded as the greatest American

soccer player of all time (Guardian 2015). Whilst LA Galaxy could not have predicted the

success Donovan would go on to have, the initial strategy of signing him to attract the

notoriously patriotic US market, which provided the team with greater emotional equity

and differentiation (Adeyinka 2011) was only aided by his subsequent achievements. In

2012, Galaxy signed Gyasi Zardes as a ‘Home Grown’ player, a move that was driven by

the same motives as the Donovan signing. The hometown connection that Zardes shares

with the club enabled fans to get excited about ‘one of their own’ turning into a star

player for both LA Galaxy and the USMNT (MLS Soccer 2016).

In 2015, LA Galaxy signed Giovani Dos Santos, a former member of Barcelona’s youth

system with experience at various teams around Europe and over 90 caps for Mexico. At

just 26, he is a near perfect representation of the ‘ideal’ signing portrayed in Chapter 2.6,

due to his youth, experience and nationality. The arrival of the Mexican caused

extraordinary excitement around the city (Guardian 2015). As the ethnic majority of Los

Angeles with 49% of the city’s population (Census 2014), and their famed love for

soccer, Latinos are a massive target market for the club. The signing of Dos Santos’ has

opened the door for a new dimension of connection between the club and the fans.

The franchise play their home games at the StubHub Center and in 2015 averaged an

attendance of 23, 392, filling 86.64%of the 27,000 capacity soccer specific stadium (MLS

Soccer 2015). For a team of LA Galaxy’s calibre, these figures do not seem to correlate

with their global brand strength and fan base statistics; leaving them fifth in total

average attendance(See Appendix A4 for full table). The reasoning for this may be due to

the club’s failure to fully engage fans in the local community. Although their past

strategies have been implemented with these aims, they have been more successful at

growing the brand internationally rather than within the city. The aforementioned

signing of Dos Santos was completed in order to aid these efforts, whilst the club has

also hired a design and branding company to rebrand the stadium, aiming to better

23

communicate their heritage and reinforce the StubHub Center as the home of the Galaxy

(Soccerex 2015). As well as this, Galaxy have announced a drop in the price of tickets is

$69.77, marking a price drop of 34.8% below 2014’s average of $107.13 (Forbes 2015).

4.4. Seattle Sounders FC: Adolescence

Established in 2007, the franchise was the 15th to be added to MLS. In the past eight

years, the team has gone on to become one of the most successful in the league and had

an average attendance of 44, 247 in 2015 (MLS Soccer 2015), over 11,000 more than

second placed Orlando City. The Sounders were bought to MLS by a team of highly

experienced individuals; with the most influential of these being Paul Allen. A co-

founder of Microsoft and owner of National Football League (NFL) team Seattle

Seahawks, Allen has been an integral part of building the Sounders’ brand. In the initial

creation of the logo, Allen’s knowledge of the local market allowed the team to design a

crest that was developed with two distinct layers to represent the partnership between

the ownership, the community, the players and the fans (Sounders FC 2008). The crest

consists of a heraldic shield surrounding the internationally recognised ‘Space Needle’,

in a colour scheme of ‘Sounder Blue’ and ‘Rave Green’, representing the contrasting

colours of the surrounding landscapes, namely the Pacific Northwest (See Appendix C1).

This colour scheme is nearly identical with that of Allen’s Seahawks, suggesting the two

brands are synonymous with one another. As well as colours, the two teams also share

the CentruryLink Field, a 67,000 capacity stadium in the heart of the city.

It is evident that in the preliminary stages of brand building, the Sounders have utilised

the foundations and facilities already put in place by the Seahawks; feeding off of their

credibility, status and fan base, enabling them to engage with an existing and established

community (similar in essence to the Chelsea – Sauber arrangement mentioned in

Chapter 2.4). This ‘partnership’ has built an inextricable link between the brands;

resulting in positive image transfer. However, this relationship is not just a case of the

Seahawks helping out the Sounders, as without the sounders, there would be no

Seahawks. In the development stages of the CenturyLink field, a vote went ahead for

planning permission; the city was opposed to the idea of a new football specific stadium.

After much deliberation, Allen suggested the stadium built should host both football and

soccer matches; “as the referendum drew near, support for the stadium grew. On Election

Day, more than 1.6 million people cast ballots in a vote so close the result wasn’t known

until the next morning. Eventually word came: the stadium had passed by a mere 36,780

votes, a margin of 51% to 49% (The Guardian 2015).” Fred Mendoza, an attorney

24

working on the referendum, claims “There is no question the soccer vote was the

difference (The Guardian 2015).” These findings express the reasoning for the affinity

the two brands share, and how these foundations have provided them the platform on

which they have excelled, together.

Rivalry is something that has driven the passion of the fan base. Voted as the best rivalry

in the MLS (MLS Soccer 2015), Seattle vs Portland is a fierce contest that attracts

attention and brings the fans closer together. According to the Aaron Reed, co-president

of the Emerald City Supporters group, the history and proximity between the cities is

what fuels the fire (ESPN 2015). Though soccer clubs of both cities have ferociously

competed for over 45 years, Sounders’ admission to the MLS has provided a platform

that sees the best team from each city face each other on a much larger scale. “Many of

the city's residents, restaurants and bars are aware of the rivalry, especially around match

day, and it rises to the level of a "big event" in that even the people who aren't normally

tuned in to the sport know what's going on. It's that big-game buzz that a city gets

sometimes, and it's ubiquitous even if you're not looking for it or paying attention (ESPN

2015).” As aforementioned in Chapter 2.5, the grouping of people into “us” vs. “them”

and “we” vs. “they” brings a sense of community around a club. This rivalry, along with

Sounders’ newfound conflict with LA Galaxy, which has been intensified due to both

teams’ success on the pitch, have captivated fans and delivered a heightened level of

passion, emotion and engagement; though LA Galaxy’s Coach, Bruce Arena, was quick to

dismiss this rivalry, proclaiming “Is it a rivalry? We don’t have any rivals. Maybe the

team that was in our building (former MLS side Chivas) was a rival, but the other teams

are just games in our conference and our league (LA Galaxy 2015).”

Even with an average ticket price of $129.46, which is $34.72 more than second highest

Houston Dynamo at $94.74 (Forbes 2015), Seattle’s attendance figures express the

extent of their connection with their fans. A big factor surrounding this relationship

between the club and the fans comes down to the Sounders’ community relationship

programmes and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) work. The ‘United in Green’

campaign consists of programmes such as MLS W.O.R.K.S, Goals for Success, Saves for

Youth, United We Serve and Sounders in Schools. These programmes have enabled the

club to integrate themselves within different communities in the city, building an

identity and rapport with the local people, thus increasing loyalty (as mentioned in

Chapter 2.5). As well as engaging the local community, the Sounders have identified the

potency of the Hispanic market, collaborating with former midfielder Gonzalo Pineda

25

and Street Soccer Mexico in order to engage the young demographic in Mexico City

(Sounders FC 2016).

Another brand building strategy employed by the Sounders is player acquisition.

Notable signings include Freddy Ljungberg, Clint Dempsey and Jordan Morris. The

Sounders signed Ljungberg in 2009 as the star player in their inaugural team. The

signing was one of similar calibre to others seen in MLS; a veteran player with

experience in Europe and a very marketable profile. His performances on the pitch

earned him a place in the MLS All-Star team and his brand certainly helped launch the

club domestically, but didn’t have the desired effect of growing the Sounders brand

globally (ESPN 2010). This point was reiterated by LA Galaxy’s Alexi Lalas, who

incredulously commented on the signing, stating “Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam would have

a better chance of making an impact at Seattle Sounders than Freddie Ljungberg (Tribal

2012)."

In 2013, the Sounders signed Clint Dempsey. With what was marked as “the biggest MLS

signing since David Beckham (Sounder at Heart 2016)” by fans; his move back to the US

signalled the return of a USMNT hero, second in the top scoring ranks to only Landon

Donovan (Guardian 2015). Dempsey’s traits as a player and personality matched those

of the Sounders fans. Tenacious, passionate and patriotic; his presence at the club has

proven to be an instrumental catalyst in developing brand affinity between the club and

fans. Shirts with ‘Dempsey’ on the back sold more than any other MLS player in 2015;

more than world renowned stars Steven Gerrard (2nd), Kaka (3rd), Andrea Pirlo (4th) and

David Villa (5th) (See Appendix A5 for full list). Jordan Morris is a signing that has had a

similar impact to that of Dempsey’s; with headlines such as “Jordan Morris: hometown

hero, Seattle star, symbol for the future of MLS (Score 2016)” providing a scope of the

immense reception given to the player. These statistics and headlines express the

monumental impact these singings have had on the team and provide an insight into the

fan behaviours of the North American market. Eight members of the USMNT appear in

the top 20, a representation of the nation’s partisanship.

4.5. New York City FC: Infancy

This team was inaugurated at the beginning of the 2015 season and became the 20th

member of MLS. The franchise is owned by the City Football Group (CFG) (80%) and the

New York Yankees (20%). CFG are owners of 3 other clubs around the world; they bring

a vast amount of experience in football strategy and branding to NYCFC; with expertise

that have seen their core team, Manchester City, turn from an infamously mid table

26

Premier League club into two time champions in just seven years. The Yankees are a

tremendously successful Baseball team with a huge international brand (2nd most valuable

sports team on earth) and an impeccable understanding of the local market (Forbes 2015).

The club’s logo is “inspired by the old New York City Subway Token, created by the Transit

Authority in 1953 and used for 50 years as the standard fare for a ride. The last version of

the token had a cut out pentagon in the centre representing the five boroughs, similar to

what appears on either side of the monogram, to reinforce the Club’s connection to the

entire city. The circle is also a symbol of unity, wholeness and infinity, and is often

associated with potential and the number one. The colours navy blue, white and orange

are drawn from the New York City flag (NYCFC 2014).” The final decision on the club’s

crest was made by over 100,000 supporters in a vote implemented in order to give the

fans a voice in the franchise, enabling the foundations of a connection to be built from

the very beginning.

In further efforts to connect and integrate with the community, NYCFC have

implemented CSR programmes such as Safe Places to Play, Soccer + Fitness + Nutrition

Education and Saturday Night Lights, helping tackle local social issues such as obesity

and crime. Whilst this strategy has enabled the club to bond with the local community,

they have come under mass scrutiny for trying to force a relationship with the fans. In

May 2015, before a home match against the Seattle Sounders, NYCFC issued a song

sheet, featuring many infamous chants tailored to the club (Independent 2015) in an

attempt to manufacture an atmosphere.

Although the team have been criticised for being too forceful, their attempts at

antagonising a rivalry have deemed successful. The ‘Hudson Derby’ between NYCFC and

the New York Red Bulls (NYRB) has been played up by both teams, in an attempt to

benefit from the equity a rivalry can provide. In the run up to the clubs’ first meeting,

taunts and jibes were thrown between the teams in the media, and the teams were very

openly trying to promote a rivalry, at the risk of coming across as ‘pushy’ (ESPN 2015).

Nevertheless, on game day, both sets of fans arrived at NYRB’s Red Bull Arena in full

voice; creating a positively ‘hostile’ atmosphere, expressing their passion and emotion in

homage to their respective teams. “The arrival of New York City FC this season led many

to think the Hudson derby would need a manufactured sense of drama. Think again (BBC

2015).”

NYCFC play their home games at the Yankee Stadium. An arena owned and played in by

the New York Yankees. The capabilities of this stadium have played a part in NYCFC’s

27

success in averaging 29,016 fans throughout their inaugural 2015 campaign; third

highest of all MLS teams (MLS Soccer 2015). In sharing the stadium with the Yankees,

NYCFC have managed to benefit from positive image transfer and engagement with a set

of heavily engaged fans that fit their target market. Irrespective of this, NYCFC plan on

building their own soccer specific stadium in one of New York’s five boroughs, in order

to attain ‘prestige’ within the city and benefit from distinctive marketability (Forbes

2015).

The player recruitment strategy employed by NYCFC is similar to that of the

aforementioned franchises. In time for their inaugural season, the team had bought in

Frank Lampard, Andrea Pirlo and David Villa. All three of these players have played

their whole careers at top teams across Europe’s best leagues, bringing a wealth of

experience and brand equity to the club. As aforementioned, Pirlo ranked fourth in

overall shirt sales, with Villa in fifth and Lampard in seventh (MLS Soccer 2015). These

statistics express the magnitude of support the players have provided the club; the fans

are not only wearing a ‘Pirlo’, ‘Villa’ or ‘Lampard’ shirt, they are signifying support for

NYCFC.

4.6. Lessons for a Major League Soccer Franchise

Through the use of extensive research and a Brand Strengths Index (BSI), LA Galaxy,

Seattle Sounders and NYCFC have been cross analysed. The radar chart below shows

each team positioned and rated out of 10 in accordance to six key brand factors. As

established throughout this report, brand identity and differentiation provide an

emotional connection, leading to brand loyalty and overall brand equity (See Appendix

E4 for Brand Equity Hierarchy). The factors highlighted in the graph below are key

components that make up brand both identity and differentiation, thus supporting brand

equity.

28

Figure 4.1. Brand Strength Index

Brand Image –The extent to which the brand’s total personality is recognised.

Brand Ownership – Clarity of the brand’s message and what it stands for; the

expression of an independent brand possessing its own identity.

Brand Culture – The ideas, values, ethos and social behaviours of a brand.

Heritage – The story and history behind a brand.

Societal Role – The brand’s involvement and integration with the community and

society it operates in.

Engagement – Both tangible and intangible; the level of involvement between the brand

and its consumers.

These factors are manipulated and tailored through specific brand strategies. Analysis of

the three franchises shows an evident pattern of approaches employed by the teams in

order to build on brand equity; these methods consist of expressive logo design, player

acquisition, stadium utilisation, CSR and exploiting a rivalry.

As an integral element of developing heritage, brand culture and engagement, it is clear

that all three teams have made extensive efforts to produce a logo that embraces the

identity of the local community whilst being a marketing tool for wider brand

considerations(as aforementioned in Chapter 2.4). Sounders, for example, created their

emblem with distinctive layers built into the design to be a literal representation of the

relationship between the owners and the community; whereas LA Galaxy have put more

focus into a design that aids internationalisation and attracting a global fan base.

0

2

4

6

8

10Brand Image

Brand Ownership

Brand Culture

Heritage

Societal Role

Engagement

LA Galaxy

Seattle Sounders

NYCFC

29

NYCFC’s approach allowed fans to have an input in the logo and vote on the winning

choice; a decision that enabled the club to heavily engage with the fans and get real-time

feedback on the fans desired brand identity.

Due to the stature of soccer in the US, tactical player acquisition is a very integral brand

building strategy; with experienced ‘big name stars’ that have played in Europe a

common, prosperous choice amongst MLS teams being utilised as a differentiation tool.

LA Galaxy, the first team to operate such a scheme as their main brand building strategy,

have been very considered in the players they have signed. Bringing in Beckham was a

huge success for the club, instantly boosting their brand image on a global scale. The

signing of Dos Santos was a judgement made in order to better connect with the

unengaged Hispanic community of the city, whilst the acquisition of ‘US hero’ Donovan

and the development of ‘home town hero’ Zardes have had a positive impact. The

patriotic publics have relished the success of these American players. This latter

strategy has also been employed in a very similar fashion by the Sounders, with the

signings of Dempsey and Morris. Shirt sales figures for Dempsey and the sheer

excitement caused by the new signing of Morris express the impact on the clubs brand

image and engagement. NYCFC’s signing of three star European players has aided

international brand awareness, but hasn’t engaged the US public like the signings of

Donovan and Dempsey have for their clubs.

Stadium utilisation plays a key role in all six brand strength components. LA Galaxy are

the only team of the three to have exclusivity of their stadium; this provides them with

more brand ownership and thus more opportunity to construct a purer connection with

their fans. Aforementioned statistics, such as stadium attendance, show that LA Galaxy

have not utilised this opportunity available to them. Although the Sounders and NYCFC

share their stadiums with other sports teams and therefore lose a certain sense of

ownership over their brand, their strategies of borrowing credibility, brand image and

fan base from these teams has enabled them to build on brand culture and engagement.

This has caused these brands to significantly grow and integrate into the cities within a

short time period. Due to their current shortcomings, brand ownership is a major force

behind NYCFC’s future plans for their own stadium.

By implementing a CSR strategy, clubs are able to increase long-term profitability and

brand equity through high ethical standards and positive public relations. LA Galaxy’s

efforts in this concept are minimal, which is expressed in the lack of engagement

between the club and their local community, which also has negative connotations for

30

the brand’s image, culture and societal role. On the other hand, NYCFC and in particular

the Sounders have strengthened their brand culture due to their deep lying

commitments in this area; ultimately contributing toward their brand identity.

Sounders’ use of former player Gonzalo Pineda to build connections in Mexico is a

resourceful strategy that has also been utilised in the Premier League; using ‘legends’ of

the club to not only implement CSR strategies in their local community, but to build fan

bases in foreign countries with high profit potential.

In a North American market that breathes patriotism, rivalries have evidently become

an important component of building brand equity, with an influence so significant they

can overcome a whole city and engage even the most unaware of publics. Seattle’s

rivalry with Portland Timbers has been embedded into the clubs’ heritage and culture,

which has enabled the club to reach an even greater level of emotional connection with

their fans. Due to LA Galaxy’s geographic location, there is no ‘natural’ rival; Coach

Arena’s recent dismissal of a rivalry between Galaxy and the Sounders could prove to be

costly, as the capitalisation of a rivalry would be beneficial for the club’s poor

engagement results. Lessons can be taken from NYCFC, who have managed to nurture

their rivalry with NYRB and develop their bond with the fans.

The overall brand strength ratings for each team (LA Galaxy: 46, Seattle Sounders: 45,

NYCFC: 38) provides an insight into the impact of each company’s strategic planning. LA

Galaxy’s sole focus on internationalisation has provided them with high brand image,

but their failure to realise the importance of a strong connection with their local

community is evident in their low engagement levels. This is in stark contrast to the

Sounders, who have heavily engaged their local community with strong brand culture

and societal role, but have so far been unsuccessful in launching their brand on a global

scale. As a very new expansion team, NYCFC have the lowest score of the three by a

significant margin; nevertheless, their well-rounded brand building attempts have

certainly ‘put the team on the map’.

31

Five

Conclusion & Recommendations

5.1 Chapter Overview

This chapter presents the conclusions of this research, underlining both the professional

and theoretical contributions of the study. The appropriateness of the research

outcomes is highlighted and the significance of further research is discussed, whilst

recommendations for both emerging MLS franchises and wider academia are also

provided.

5.2 Recommendations for an Emerging Major League Soccer Franchise

As a highly influential and ever-present feature of this study, the five brand building

strategies of logo design, player acquisition, stadium utilisation, CSR and exploitation of

a rivalry have naturally been selected as recommendations for a newly established

franchise.

Logo Design

Marketability

Community

Heritage

A logo should incorporate all three of these factors. Learnings from the case studies

suggest that a combination of these components will provide a wholesome logo that

shapes the foundations for strong brand identity to be built.

Player Acquisition

When considering new integral signings, a franchise should recruit players with

credentials that match one or more of the bullet points highlighted below.

European Experience (e.g. David Beckham)

‘American Legend’ (e.g. Clint Dempsey)

Home Town Hero (e.g. Jordan Morris)

32

Learnings from the case studies suggest a player that matches these credentials will

enable a team to create a strong basis for establishing recognition and prestige, whilst

nurturing the emotional connection between the club and the fans.

Stadium Utilisation

A key recommendation for a new franchise would be to ‘link’ with an existing sports

team in the area. As the examples of Sounders and NYCFC show, this strategy enables a

franchise to gain from positive image transfer and provides a foothold on an already

established, highly engaged fan base.

If a franchise is opened in a city without an established sports team, the alternative

strategy would be to bring in a globally recognised individual as an endorser of the

brand. Beckham’s role in the new Miami franchise and Will Ferrell’s role in Los Angeles

FC (Guardian 2016) show that involvements and endorsements from respected figures

can be beneficial towards brand equity before a franchise is even fully inaugurated.

CSR

A key tool used in order to build a connection with the community. In order to fully

engage fans both near and far, a franchise should initiate community programmes both

locally and globally.

Rivalry

A new franchise should try and antagonise a rivalry. The benefits of a rivalry have

widely been discussed, and in the highly patriotic North American market they are a

very influential tool at stifling fan engagement.

5.3 Research Conclusions and Future Direction

As the North American sport industry becomes ever more saturated, brand equity is

becoming increasingly invaluable for teams trying to build a fan base. With more and

more franchises becoming existent, focused brand strategies are as important as ever in

enabling a team to gain a foothold on a market. In this context, this research begins to

address the implications of six key brand factors that feed into differentiation and brand

identity, in an effort to understand the factors that contribute towards a franchise

gaining an emotional connection with its fans. Based on the newly proposed Brand

Equity Hierarchy (BEH) and BSI, this study has attempted to explore the impact of brand

strategies on the factors within the BEH and answer the principal research question:

33

What strategies should an emerging MLS franchise use to establish and develop a

brand? This analysis provides a new understanding and perception of how a franchise

can literally ‘build’ a brand. The findings suggest that by applying a brand strategy that

influences the six bottom line brand factors in the hierarchy, the higher placed

components will be impacted and increased or decreased accordingly.

To further develop this study and eradicate the limitations experienced throughout,

modifications can be applied. The inability to conduct primary research was a great

limitation to this study. Further research would provide the chance to conduct extensive

surveys that could gain stakeholder’s opinions of each club’s ratings in accordance with

the factors in the BSI. This data would provide fans’ opinions of each brand’s strength

and the average would provide a numerical figure on true brand strength, something

notoriously hard to quantitatively measure. With the analysis of more MLS franchises, a

database of BSIs could be built and reliability would be increased.

The BSI utilised in this study has been specifically tailored for a sporting franchise in the

North American market, the factors within the BSI can be weighted differently in

accordance with the brand they’re measuring. This means that the BSI can be applied to

any franchise within any industry. For example, if the BSI were to be used to analyse

McDonald’s brand strength, factors such as Societal Role will player a bigger role in the

fast food industry; therefore the Societal Role could be weighted to have a certain

percentage more of an impact.

xxxiv

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xli

Appendices

A. Major League Soccer

A.1. Maps of MLS teams

(Duke 2015)

A.2. Evolution of MLS logo

(Blade 2014)

xlii

A.3. Evolution of Dallas Stars Logo

(SportsLogos 2013)

A.4. Average Attendance Table

(MLS Soccer 2015)

0

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

30,000

35,000

40,000

45,000

Seat

tle

So

un

de

rs

Orl

and

o C

ity

New

Yo

rk C

ity

FC

To

ron

to F

C

LA G

ala

xy

Po

rtla

nd

Tim

ber

s

San

Jo

se E

art

hq

uak

es

Ho

ust

on

Dyn

am

o

Van

cou

ver

Wh

ite

cap

s FC

Re

al S

alt

Lak

e

Spo

rtin

g K

ansa

s C

ity

New

Yo

rk R

ed

Bu

lls

New

En

gla

nd

Re

volu

tio

n

Mo

ntr

eal I

mp

act

Ph

ilad

elp

hia

Un

ion

Co

lum

bu

s C

rew

SC

D.C

. Un

ite

d

FC D

alla

s

Ch

icag

o F

ire

Co

lora

do

Rap

ids

xliii

A.5. Most Sold Player Shirts 2015

1. Clint Dempsey

2. Steven Gerrard

3. Kaká

4. Andrea Pirlo

5. David Villa

6. Obafemi Martins

7. Frank Lampard

8. Bradley Wright-Phillips

9. Brek Shea

10. Mix Diskerud

11. Robbie Keane

12. Sebastian Giovinco

13. Graham Zusi

14. Dom Dwyer

15. Gyasi Zardes

16. Didier Drogba

17. Giovani Dos Santos

18. Lee Nguyen

19. Wil Trapp

20. Sacha Kljestan

(MLS Soccer 2015)

xliv

B. LA Galaxy

B.1. MLS Support Map

(FOX 2015)

B.2. Player Acquisition Chart

xlv

B.3. Brand Evolution

Old New

Old New

xlvi

C. Seattle Sounders

C.1. Crest & Kit Comparison with Seattle Seahawks

xlvii

D. New York City FC

D.1. Crest

D.2. City Football Group Teams

xlviii

E. Frameworks

E.1. LA Galaxy BSI

E.2. Seattle Sounders BSI

0

2

4

6

8

10Brand Image

Brand

Ownership

Brand Culture

Heritage

Societal Role

Engagement

LA Galaxy

LA Galaxy

02468

10Brand Image

Brand

Ownership

Brand Culture

Heritage

Societal Role

Engagement

Seattle Sounders

Seattle Sounders

xlix

E.3. New York City BSI

E.4. Brand Equity Hierarchy

0

2

4

6

8Brand Image

Brand Ownership

Brand Culture

Heritage

Societal Role

Engagement

NYCFC

NYCFC

Brand Equity

Brand Loyalty

Emotional Connection

Brand Identity

Brand Image Brand Ownership Brand Culture

Differentiation

Heritage Societal Role Engagement