Analysis Of Brand Love On English Football Teams

Analysis of Brand Love on English Football Teams

Rahida Abd Rahman¹, Azleen Ilias²

¹Labuan Faculty of International Finance, University Malaysia Sabah, Labuan International Campus, Labuan Federal Territory, Malaysia.

²UNITEN Business School, University Tenaga Nasional, Bandar Muadzam Shah, Pahang, Malaysia.

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.47772/IJRISS.2025.9010208

Received: 24 December 2024; Accepted: 06 January 2025; Published: 13 February 2025

ABSTRACT

This study aims to see the emergence of brand love for English Premier League (EPL) football teams. It was conducted on EPL football fans in Malaysia. The data was collected using an online questionnaire sent via social media to reach 150 respondents. Brand love is a construct composed of six dimensions: emotional attachment, high quality, brand connection, intrinsic rewards, thinking, and passion. The results indicated that the consequences of brand love for football teams are loyalty, word-of-mouth, and willingness to invest time.

Keywords: Brand love, Football teams, Loyalty, Sports marketing

INTRODUCTION

The word satisfaction has long been the pinnacle objective in the marketing concept. However, recent findings showed that satisfying consumers is insufficient to reach a more competitive market. (Carroll et all, 2006) That is why the research for brand love was born: to find a new, meaningful way to create consumer satisfaction by creating a relationship with them after the post-purchase stage. (Reichheld, 2003; Roberts, 2004). Thus, this paper emphasises the word “Brand Love” due to its connection with the emotional and passionate level of the fans towards a brand. (Iyer et al., 2016)

Football is now known in many sectors of the world as “the world’s game” due to its increasing and rapid growth of popularity over the years. (Pifer et al., 2018) Football has become an industry where services and marketing companies become the intermediaries that serve most consumers and fans of football. (Jones et al., 2016) Football has become so popular for businesses that it has become a brand for fans and consumers worldwide. The FIFA World Cup is the world’s biggest football event, premiered as a single sports event that occurs once every 4 years. In 2018, the FIFA World Cup was held in Russia, and it cost around $14 billion to host the event successfully. In the sporting world, Sports organisations and individual athletes use a name, design, and image to differentiate their brands from the rest. (Shank, 2009) Nowadays, we can see sports organisations worldwide perpetrating their resources to fans to cultivate stronger relationships with them. (Lee et al, 2019)

However, our primary focus is the English League, which consists of many leagues. The significant and top-level league for English Football is the English Premier League. A symbiotic relationship has developed between sports and media, especially television, which allows them to benefit from each other’s complementary interests. (Bolotny & Bourg, 2006) Sky Sports and BT, a sports broadcasting channel, is an example. Broadcasting the Premier League from 2019 until 2022 costs Sky Sport and BT channels USD 6 billion. (Sky News, 2018)

Sports have become an excellent cultural and social environment for people to connect through sportsmanship, whether Malay, Chinese, Indian, or other groups (Pilus et al., 2013). Malaysians love talking about sports, especially when it relates to football clubs or even just the players. Hence, the study will be aimed at Malaysians as there is yet to be a study on how Malaysian citizens form brand love towards football.

The focus of this study will consider how Malaysian fans create a mutual bond with their favourite English Football League team through brand love and its respective elements. The main objective of this study is to find out how consumers create relationships with their beloved brand, specifically with English football clubs. Additionally, this study is conducted toward Malaysians because of their different ethnicities and opinions towards being a football fan. This is because we can identify the elements of brand love and see which factors drive consumers’ attachment to a brand or a football club.

Statement of the research problem

The fast pace of football’s growth worldwide has changed many aspects of the sports industry. The football industry has specifically adapted to the needs and wants of excited fans.

Objective of the study

In general, this research investigated brand love for the English football league team as a brand from the perspective of Malaysians.

1. To examine the relationship between elements of brand love and loyalty toward football clubs.
2. To examine the connection between elements of brand love and word of mouth about football clubs.
3. To examine the impact between elements of brand love and willingness to invest time.

Significance of the study

Although brand love studies have significantly increased over the years, a slight majority are still conducted on sports. This research will be meaningful to researchers, especially those who manage sports clubs and companies that develop sponsorship strategies. It will also contribute to the brand’s theoretical contribution to football teams.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Brand Love and Football Teams

Essentially, brands include names, terms, signs, symbols, or a combination of them, intended to identify the goods or services of one seller or group of sellers and to set them apart from those of competitors (American Marketing Association, 1960). This is further explained by Keller (2008): “The moment a marketer named, created a logo, and symbolised a new product or service, they have created a brand.” In the long run, the brand represents the company’s image and ability to forge long-term consumer relationships. The brand defines the product’s position in the marketplace, gives it an identity, and distinguishes itself from competitors (Goldsmith & Goldsmith, 2012). Besides distinguishing products, brands also help simplify consumer decision-making processes, especially if they are aware of the brands or have previous experience with them (Kotler & Armstrong, 2010).

On the other hand, sports organisations and individual athletes use brands to distinguish their products and services by using combinations of name, image, and design. (Shank, 2009) Some researchers disagree with the context that sports are a brand of their own due to the argument that supporters or fans of sports reject the fact that football clubs are brands. (Hinson et al., 2020) Due to strong brand association and brand loyalty, marketing activities of global football brands are increasing fan loyalty in other countries. (Hinson et al., 2020) In this case, we look into the minds of Malaysian fans and their love for English Football Clubs. Thus, we can see the spread of marketing communication about football clubs in other countries.

There are many different beliefs and attitudes towards the objects that shape those beliefs, and this is how brand love is formed, as consumers engage with the brands that shape their beliefs (Sprott & Spangenberg, 2009). Customers can form a loving relationship with a brand as they would a person if they perceived the brand as an individual (Ranjbarian et al., 2013). As Batra et al. (2012) research stated, brand love can create unyielding brand loyalty and positive word of mouth due to consumers’ love toward a particular brand as that brand has similar identification and characteristics to that of the consumers. However, brand love varies from cultural differences to consumers’ satisfaction and self-expression. (Aro et al., 2018) Regarding Batra et al. (2012) and Martin et al. (2020) studies, a few elements of brand love are proposed and explained for further understanding of the research topic.

High Quality

Several aspects of perceived quality contribute to a brand’s value: a high-quality brand gives consumers a reason to buy it and allows it to sit head-to-head with its market competitors, charge a premium price, and expand its range. (Aaker, 1991) A consumer’s perception of the reliability, dependability, and performance of a product or service is at the core of their engagement with a brand, which plays a key role in their preference, satisfaction, and purchase decisions. (Nikhashemi et al., 2017) The brand is driven by the perception that quality will encourage repeat purchases. When consumers feel positive about a brand, they are more likely to purchase and repurchase it. (Park et al., 2010; Shanahan et al., 2018) Perceive quality can also be seen in football clubs; fans who subscribe to sports channels want their experience to be entertaining when watching the game. (Martin et al., 2020) Companies can gain competitive advantages by offering a service they feel would satisfy their consumers, which could not be matched by anyone else in a similar business. (Ismail and Yunan, 2016) Therefore, providing exceptional customer service is a key step that companies must remember to achieve or gain competitive advantages and success within the industry. (Ramseook-Munhurrun et al., 2010) Thus, football clubs that provide high-quality games or skilled athletes that capture the audience’s attention will achieve more significant advantages than others.

Emotional Attachment

The emotional attachment of a person to an object can be described as an emotional bond between the two. (Thompson et al., 2005) Park and Macinnis (2006) explain that emotional attachment reflects a person through brands, people, places, or even things. Furthermore, emotional attachment toward a brand can protect the organisation from harmful information and ethical delay (Schmalz & Orth, 2012). The brand must be present throughout a person’s life to create an emotional bond, whether within the family, in their childhood, etc. (Iyer et al., 2016).

In sports, emotional attachment to a team has been used to examine the bond between football teams and fans (Kwon & Armstrong, 2004). Local leisure activities make people more attached to their communities; the same goes for football fans who spectate their favourite professional football teams (Bricker & Kerstetter, 2000; Kyle et al., 2003; Ninomiya, 2011). Hence, emotional attachment conveys brand love because consumers feel familiarity as they connect with the brand (Patwardhan & Balasubramanian, 2013).

Brand Connection

Customer’s brand connection refers to the decree in which a person integrates their favourite brand into their identity. (Escalas and Bettman, 2005) An important part of self-expression is the relationship between the consumer’s identity and their choice of brand, as well as the symbolic consumption of it. Self-brand connection measures the degree of connection between the consumer and the brand. (Aguirre- Rodriguez, 2012) It is said that when individuals have strong brand connections, it will make them feel satisfied with their needs. The brand connection allows individuals to feel a sense of identity, which improves a person’s socialisation with society. (Kemp et al., 2014; Roy and Rabbanee, 2015) This can also be seen when an individual tries to connect with a group of people representing his or her identification or self-perception. (Lock and Heere, 2017) A connection with the brand is one of the main factors determining the intention to purchase a team’s products and attend their events. (Santini, 2013) To reflect their positive self-image, the individuals engage in social activities such as football to reflect themselves. (Lock and Heere, 2017) Consequently, brand connection will be directed toward brand love as the determinant.

Intrinsic Rewards

Some customers will preferably receive rewards for being in a relationship with a brand, whether it is intrinsic or extrinsic rewards. This is because reward helps to motivate a person physically or mentally. For sports fans, the professional football team is their central endorsement of reward. When a football team does and performs well on the field, the fans are excited for the next game. The intrinsic reward is the emotional attachment to the brand or football team (Martin et al., 2020).

A sense of belonging can also be considered a reward, especially for football fans who want to be in a self-expressive community with individuals who share their interests (Arnett et al., 2003). When a person has been rewarded, they will have a tangible reason to stay with that brand. This is because they feel fulfilled and will want to support and stay longer as that brand has cared for them initially.

Henceforth, football organisations should look into the fans’ feelings and see how they can generate love and attachment by caring about the fans’ welfare (Ahuvia, 2005; Martin et al., 2020)

Thinking and Frequent Use

To successfully become a partner or member of a brand, one must always be thinking and interact with the brand itself (Fournier, 1998). Fans usually think about their team and sport; these thoughts will be a frequent topic to converse with people, especially when there is a league or season. (Daniel et al., 2020) The stronger the person’s love towards a team, the more likely they will watch a replay of a past game or talk about it. (Bristow and Sebastian, 2001) Fans often think about their favourite team or athletes, which will automatically link back to the team’s merchandise. The frequent thinking and habit of playing football will drive consumers to continue using or create an emotional bond with football teams (Martin et al., 2020). Thus, frequent interaction or thinking is important in finding the truth of brand love.

Passion

When a person is said to be desiring something, it usually leads them to be obsessed and passionate towards the thing. For consumers, passion builds emotional attachments and influences relevant behaviours toward a particular brand (Bauer et al., 2007). Positive brand loyalty occurs when consumers’ passion for a brand is emotionally intense. (Hemsley-Brown and Alnawas, 2016) Due to the strong devotion consumers show toward the brand they love, devoted consumers will have a passionate attitude toward it. (Ortiz et al., 2013; Sarkar and Sarkar, 2016) Passionate consumers will have stronger purchase intentions toward the specific brand. It takes passion on the football fan’s part to connect with their team. (Cayolla and Loureiro, 2014) So, an extreme football fan will surely be eager to connect with their favourite team because they are devoted to creating an identity similar to the group. (Daniels et al., 2020)

Consequences of Brand Love

Previous research on brand love stated that successful bonding of customers with the brand would bring about numerous consequences (Ganesh et al., 2000; Carroll & Ahuvia, 2006; Roy et al., 2013). Three agreeable aspects will be significant for this study: word of mouth, willingness to invest time, and loyalty. Thus, this part will discuss the three consequences that brand love delivers.

Martin et al. (2020) designed a new theoretical model by combining numerous studies in the past to create a brand-new model to analyse the level of brand love a person has toward a football club. Six elements will lead a person to brand love: passion, quality, attachment, connection, rewards, and rumination. Three hypotheses were made to see the effect of brand love, as in Figure 1. These three hypotheses are Word of mouth, willingness to invest time and money, and Loyalty. Notably, the main topic is to find out people’s love for football as a brand.

Figure 1: Research Framework

Source: adapted from Martin et al.(2020)

Word of Mouth Communication

Word of Mouth (WOM) is the oldest method for sharing opinions or information about a product or service. (Hussain et al., 2017) WOM is an informal way of sharing marketing information, which can shape the mindset or attitude of consumers toward the products and services. (Katz and Lazarsfeld, 1966) WOM is also a tool for communicating the products and services from consumer to consumer for commercialisation purposes. (Litvin et al., 2008) Admittedly, WOM is one of the most effective communication tools for affecting the behaviour of consumers towards a brand. (Daugherty and Hoffman, 2014) A study has conceived that people nowadays use less of the traditional WOM and exploit ICT as a source of information. This usage of ICT as a medium of transferring opinion is called Electronic Word of Mouth (eWOM). (Huete-Alcocer, 2017)

While WOM and EWOM are similar, they are also different. Both methods influence consumers’ satisfaction with products or services (Yang, 2017). Therefore, fans who are satisfied with a brand, such as a football club, will surely provide information through word of mouth to their friends or family.

H1: There is a relationship between elements of brand love and loyalty toward football clubs.

Willingness to Invest Time

When individuals are in love with a brand, it is almost certain that it will surround every aspect of their lives. To explain this, the consequences of a successful brand love will lead individuals to buy the brand’s products or services or even invest time and effort in the brand. This is due to individuals’ emotional attachment to brands linked to their lives. (Batra et al., 2012) This willingness to sacrifice applies to people who are committed to the brand rather than those who are not. (Loureiro, 2012) Commitment towards a brand comes about when consumers are delighted with the product that they purchased previously. Committed customers will then willingly pay higher prices due to their love of the brand. (Loureiro, 2013) All these psychological factors happen when a brand correctly represents the customer’s identity and personality. (Schmitt, 2012).

This also connects to football, where fans pay money to purchase tickets and merchandise to watch and support their favourite football clubs. (Martin et al., 2020) People with strong feelings about football will spend more time and resources on the team’s products and events. (De Olivera et al., 2013) Thus, fans have a length of willingness that makes them sacrifice and invest everything in something when it is favourable to them.

H2: There is a connection between elements of brand love and word of mouth about football clubs.

Loyalty

Loyalty towards a brand comes from the relationship nurtured with the consumers and organisation over time. Loyalty is the repetition of buying a product or service of a particular brand without being influenced by alternate brands’ marketing efforts. (Oliver, 1997; Markelz, 2017) Customers are more likely to trust, identify, engage, and remain loyal to brands offering them more value. (Tsai and Wang, 2016) Strong customer relationships tend to lead to brand loyalty. Brands whose customers know who they are and identify with them tend to grow loyal. (So et al., 2017)

Football fans will support their favourite team with a positive mindset due to their strong attachment to the particular team. When this happens, customers usually purchase souvenirs or tickets to watch matches. (Hinson et al., 2020) In some instances, football fans even go as far as to remember the club’s anthem, such as “Glory Glory Man United,” which is the song for Manchester United FC. Specifically, fans perceive the club’s care for what they think and feel like they are participating in the process. (Martin et al., 2020) Hence, knowing whether brand loyalty will be developed just by the love for a particular brand is important.

H3: There is an impact between elements of brand love and willingness to invest time.

METHODOLOGY

This study aims to find the deep level of Malaysian fans’ interest in English Football Clubs as a brand. In this study, we will be using primary data as our main information collection. Primary data is used to solve a problem by collecting data from others (Malhotra, 2006). A questionnaire will be used to collect the data, particularly in a survey, as it is more trustworthy and unbiased (Malhotra, 2006).

Data Collection and Research Instrument

This study surveyed the primary information gathered to determine Malaysians’ brand love for English Football Clubs successfully. This paper seeks out the degree of love Malaysians have for English Football Teams, seen as a brand on their own. The methodology here will include the procedure, survey questionnaire development, and statistical data analysis.

The survey for this research was released in September 2021 and involved 150 respondents from Malaysia. The survey will be distributed through Facebook, WhatsApp, and Instagram. The total raw data collected from the respondents is 150. The raw data that has been analysed did not represent any sign of bias, which is perfect because there will not be any need for an elimination process. The more samples there are the better the result. The data gathered was solely aimed toward Malaysian football fans to see their opinion of English Football Clubs as a brand they love.

As stated, the research targets Malaysian fans and their love for English football clubs. In this research, the survey questionnaire given to the respondents consists of three sections, which are Section A, Section B, and Section C. Section A will record the demographic of the respondents, such as their gender, age, ethnicity, marital status, education level, occupation, monthly income, as well as the respondents favourite English football clubs. Section B aims to measure the elements of brand love, which consists of six parts. The parts mentioned in section B are Passion, Quality, Reward, Rumination, Connection, and Attachment. Section C will measure the consequences of brand love. The measurement will include loyalty, word of mouth, and willingness to invest time and money. The data collection method is measured using a 5-point Likert scale for sections B and C. In Section A, respondents will answer multiple-choice questions, making responding easier and quicker. For the five-point Likert scale, the respondents will answer a scale ranging from “1” strongly disagree to “5” strongly agree. This research utilises the survey questionnaire adapted from Martin et al. (2020). The questionnaire consists of 38 items split into three sections. Only English is used, as in Table 1.

Table 1: Instruments

Population and Samples

The target population for this study is comprised of Malaysian football fans among the 200 respondents. The questionnaire was distributed through social media like WhatsApp, Facebook, and Instagram. The questionnaire was used in two languages: Bahasa Malaysia and English. The researcher chose Malaysia as the sample study because of their experience living there. The chosen sample is entirely appropriate for this study and will have reliable information in this case.

According to Comrey and Lee (1992), sample sizes for factor analysis should be 50 as very poor, 100 as poor, 300 as good, 500 as very good, and 1000 as excellent. The more significant sample, the more accurate and reliable the data to be successful. However, for this research, a minimum of 200 respondents is set to get a fast data analysis. A survey questionnaire has been distributed conveniently to young adults and adults in the Klang Valley area.

Statistical Analysis

This research will use the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), WarpPLS, and SmartPLS for statistical analysis. For the demographic Section, the author will use SPSS tools to measure the data. For brand love and its consequences, WarpPLS and SmartPLS will be used to measure the variables. In addition to using descriptive statistics and reliability, correlations, and regression tests to create the new results, the hypothesis will be considered during data analysis. Additionally, reliability analysis is used to determine whether the data is reliable, and the Cronbach’s coefficient α value must be above 0.70 for the data to be considered valid. Therefore, the closer Cronbach’s alpha is to 1, the greater the reliability of the data.

FINDINGS

This chapter seeks to find the most significant elements in increasing brand love. It also finds whether brand love is relevant to brand loyalty, willingness to invest time and money, and word of mouth. The data gathered will be used to determine whether it is usable through the software SPSS and SmartPLS.

Demographic Analysis

In this part, the demographics of the respondents will be measured and accessed to understand Malaysian football fans. The first thing analysed in this Section was the gender of males and females. Table 2 found that 78 respondents (52%) are male, and 72 (48%) are female.

Table 2 Respondents’ Profile

Next, the age of the respondents was gathered. Five categories of age groups were measured throughout the survey. Those age groups were people that are below 20, which accounted for 8 people (5.3%), 21 to 30 years old in a total of 128 people (85.3%), 31 to 40 years old, aggregate 8 people (5.3%), 41-50 years old are about 5 people (3.3%) and people that are above 50 of age is only 1 person (0.7%). Most respondents are between the ages of 21 and 30, most likely because most are students.

In addition, the research gathers data on the respondents’ ethnicity and race. Eighteen respondents (12%) are of the Malay race. Chinese respondents consist of 26 people, which is 17.3% of the total respondents. Indians comprise 13 people (8.7%). Native Sabah contains the most people, 63 people (42%), while Native Sarawak is second in lead with 27 people (18%). Other races consist of 3 people only (2%). Respondents who are currently single consist of 135 people (90%), and respondents who are already married involve 15 people (10%).

Six education categories exist, but most respondents only reached the Master’s level. Therefore, two other categories were eliminated. About 6 people (4%) have SPM-level education, while 17 people (11.3%) have STPM or diploma-level education. The category with the most respondents is Bachelor’s level education, with 119 respondents (79.3%). On the other hand, the Master’s level education comprises 8 people, which is 5.3%.

Furthermore, respondents’ occupations were collected to further the studies of Malaysian fans. Five categories were made for this part: students, private sector, government sector, self-employed, and unemployed. As stated before, most respondents are students, with an overall of 95 people (63%). The private sector has 29 people, 19.3 per cent of the total respondents. The government sector, on the other hand, has 11 people, which rounds off to 7.3 per cent of respondents. Self-employed respondents are about 7 people (4.7%), and unemployed respondents currently are 8 people (5.3%).

Lastly, the income of respondents was analysed to see the different levels of income each individual has. Five income levels were classified, starting with incomes less than RM1500, RM1501 to RM3000, RM3001 to RM4500, RM4501 to RM6000, and RM6000 and above. People with an income below RM 1500 were primarily students and totalled 110 people (73.3%). People with income of RM1501 to RM3000 amounted to 21 people (14%). The income level of RM3001 to RM4500 comprises 8 people, which is 5.4 per cent of respondents. Respondents with a monthly income of RM4501 to RM6000 can be seen by 6 people (4%), and respondents with an income above 6000 are only 5 people (3.3%).

Favourite English Football League Teams

In the survey, a question about the respondents’ favourite teams was asked to find which English football clubs were their team of choice. Most of the respondents chose Manchester United as their favourite team. Liverpool came second regarding people’s preferences, and Chelsea came third. These teams have set themselves in the fans’ minds as the people’s favourite team, as Table 3 shows.

Table 3 English Football Teams

Data Analysis

This research requires multiple analyses, each leading to another. First, researchers will need to analyse the first-order measurement model, which in this case is to find and confirm the factor that led to brand love. The second step will be explained further in the research.

First-Order Measurement

The first order will evaluate the reliability, discrimination, and convergent validity of the dimension of brand love and its consequences. Every data set and item load was load placed correctly in the right dimension to find validity in the analysis process, as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2: First-Order Construction Model

The first-order model construct is shown below, with all items in their respective places. After conducting the calculation in SmartPLS, the result is shown in Table 4. The table is summarised so the reader can understand the model more easily. To check the indicator reliability, we must check the item leadings to see whether it is above 0.708. The table shows that the value for all item loadings is above 0.708 and is stated as a reliable indicator. To check the internal consistency reliability of the data, we will be checking whether Cronbach’s alpha and Composite Reliability are between 0.7 and 0.9. Table 4 shows that all data is valid and has met Cronbach’s alpha and Composite Reliability requirements. The convergent validity requires the Average Variance Extracted (AVE), which needs to be higher than 0.5. The table shows that all variables above 0.5 satisfy the cases.

The variance inflation factor (VIF) was also analysed to confirm no multicollinearity issue among the variables. VIF requires all values to be higher than 1, and judging by the table below, all values are higher than 1 and fulfil the condition. Therefore, these tables, which are the psychometric properties of the scales, are acceptable circumstances to proceed to the following analysis.

Table 4 Analysis of the psychometric properties of the scales

Another analysis conducted is the discriminant validity, which is supposed to examine the correlation of the dimension and its variable. The average variance is indicated by the square root of the total variance derived in the italicised values. The findings did not indicate a negative correlation between the AVE and each dimension. Therefore, the measurements exhibited discriminant validity. This means that all the values in italics and diagonals are more significant than the element inside, as seen in Table 5. Our analysis shows that the first-order measurement model exhibits high convergent and discriminatory validity, so we conclude that the measures are reliable.

Table 5 Discriminant Validity

Thus, that marks the end of the first-order model construct, which has been proven reliable for proceeding to the next part, the second-order model construct.

Second Order Measurement

The second analysis will construct the second-order model using the dimension of the first-order model. To perform this type of analysis, we should consider the dimension of the data, the weights, and their meaning (Wright et al., 2012). Figure 3 shows the new model created using the standardised latent variable scores from the first-order analysis. The latent variable created from the first order will be the new indicator for the new model.

Figure 3: Second-Order Construction Model

Figure 4 consists of four variables, including the newest variable, brand love. Brand love comprises six latent variables: Attachment, Quality, Brand Connection, Rewards, Thinking, and Passion. Figure 4 shows the result of the second-order factor, which shows that Brand Love (BL) is related to all three consequences that are Willingness to Invest (INV), Word of Mouth (WOM), and Loyalty (LOY). The figure below shows that INV, LOY, and WOM are considerably related to Brand Love by seeing the beta coefficient (β), which are LOY β = 0.90, INV β = 0.83, and WOM β = 0.81. Furthermore, all the consequences have a P value of below 0.01, which makes it valid. The research also analyses the R² value of each endogenous variable. INV and WOM have an R² value of 0.68 and 0.65, respectively.

Meanwhile, LOY has the highest R² value of them all, 0.81, which means LOY has a high explanatory capacity against the rest of the endogenous variables. Hence, this model construct is viable for further analysis. Table 6 is the concluded model shown in table form, making it much easier for the reader to understand.

Figure 4: Structural Model Results

Table 6 Comparison of hypothesis

This research was conducted on Malaysian Football fans and their love of the English Football Teams. This love towards football clubs can be called brand love, and we wanted to see the Malaysian thoughts on this topic. One hundred fifty random respondents were surveyed on this topic: “investigating brand love towards the English football team as a brand from the perspective of Malaysians.” This research aims to determine whether brand love towards football teams will lead to fans giving out Loyalty, Word of Mouth, and Willingness to invest time and money.

DISCUSSION

As stated before, this research is followed by six components of brand love: attachment, quality, brand connection, rewards, frequent thought and use of brand, and passion. Furthermore, the following also describes how brand love brings about loyalty, word of mouth, and a willingness to invest time and money. After running the data analysis and collecting all the plausible data to make both the first and second model, we have found out about several appealing factors of Malaysian fans and their favourite football teams. As seen in the fourth chapter, we have analysed the reliability and validity of the measurement. Everything from the loadings, Cronbach’s alpha, Composite reliability, and AVE is acceptable. Furthermore, the VIF measurement was also validated as a non-multicollinearity among indicators due to being higher than the value of 1.

The first-order model has statistically proven useful without any needed elimination of indicators. Unlike the research of Martin et al., where the author eliminated the “high quality” indicator, this research checked all variables to be usable. It is linked closely to the properties of brand love. The reason might be due to the location of conduct or even the number of respondents gathered. Martin et al. (2020) state that in other areas, “quality” might not be the case for love of the brand. Judging by the statistics of this research, I agree partially because this perspective will differ among regions worldwide in terms of culture and beliefs. So, undeniably, all six variables are what made up the intense love for the brand. It is also important to know that the passion and desire of football fans are what lead them closer to the brand. Next, the second-order model was made by analysing the consequences of brand love: loyalty, word of mouth, and willingness to invest time and money. The new latent variable, which is brand love, is what links the three consequences together. Hence, the measurement of all the variables reached a significant level.

Looking back at the hypotheses, brand love has a positive impact on all three consequences, and this was also the case in past research by Martin et al. Loyalty shows the most substantial positive influence on brand love, with a beta coefficient (β) of 0.90 and a p-value below 0.01. Word of Mouth also positively influences brand love as its beta coefficient (β) is 0.81 and p-value below 0.01. Lastly, the Willingness to Invest time and money toward the favourite team is held with a beta coefficient (β) of 0.83 and a p-value below 0.01.

The assumption that the high level of the brand will lead to the three consequences is valid. Several questions from the survey got mixed answers, such as, “I go to the stadium to watch local and international matches.” However, the question is still relevant and beneficial to the case. Knowing people’s favourite English football teams is also significant information for this case as it helps us determine which English football teams are the most well-known. This information will be significant for researchers in the future.

CONCLUSIONS

In football, teams compete against other teams to win the people, the prize, and the game’s championship. This is no different to business, where companies compete to capture the consumers and be on top of the game. From a business perspective, companies always find ways to improve their consumer relationships. Moreover, when the companies finally achieve a strong bond with the consumers, it is said that they are a beloved brand in the consumer’s minds and hearts. The same goes for football; fans cheer on their team when winning or performing well. They cheer because they are dedicated and care about the team, wanting their favourite team to win against the opposing team. The research results prove that the six variables, attachment, quality, brand connection, rewards, frequent thought and use, and passion, are the components that form “Brand Love.”

Six components accompany brand love due to its characteristics, as stated in the literature review beforehand. People become attached to their favourite brand due to endorsement of the sport from a young age. When a person is engaged in an activity, they tend to stick with it till they grow older. A person’s love for football builds over time as it comes from tradition, learning to play, or watching matches. That attachment grows stronger when a circle of friends is talking about it. That is why football fans are attached to football; they create a bond with it. Quality is an important aspect of the football team of choice for Malaysian fans. There might be several reasons, probably because Malaysians prefer famous teams such as Manchester United rather than Everton FC, which is the least famous in the category. Not only that, but Malaysians also look upon the team winning rate over the years, which is why they prefer high-quality teams. Brand connection often appears when a person feels that the brand they love impacts their well-being. This includes the person’s identity and self-esteem or even social background.

On the other hand, rewards create a sense of love due to fulfilment and achievement; this can be regarding a football team winning or watching their favourite player play. It shows that rewards create a sense of addiction in wanting more from the team and making them tune in for future plays, henceforth creating love towards the team. As for frequent thought and use, fans are likelier to talk about football during the season than in the off-season. Most Malaysian fans think a lot about their favourite team and often discuss and read about the topic regarding their team. This shows that Malaysian fans are concerned about the team that they love. Lastly, passion is the most important aspect of creating brand love, as it is the fundamental indicator of loyalty, word of mouth, and investment of time and money. Thus, these six indicators are probable in creating a mindset of love and relationship to a brand.

As a result, it shows a high degree of love from a person to their favourite team. This confirms that football fans will always stick with their favourite team of choice no matter what country they are in. As Martin et al.’s research stated, football fans will always stay loyal to their team of preference due to the relationships created over time. Word of mouth is also revealed to be significant when football fans’ brand love is at its peak. Fans will start talking about their favourite teams as if they are the team’s ambassador. With every gameplay made by the team, the fans will start discussing the matches with friends, co-workers, and even family. With little afford, football organisation indirectly promoted their club through word of mouth made by their fans.

To sum up, the willingness to invest time and money in the fan’s favourite football teams is also significant to the study of brand love. Time and money are vital assets in a person’s life, and spending all those assets on a football team they love means they are trying to create a relationship with that entity. Judging by the questionnaire created, most fans will buy merchandise and watch their favourite team matches on television or even in a physical stadium. This outcome has proven that fans are dedicated to creating a bond with their team of choice. This proves how strong a person’s love for a brand can be.

Sports marketing is generally a new marketing concept, and little research has been conducted on this topic. However, with tournaments, championships and new sports being created, the future of sports marketing might be over the top as people are easily hooked to the sport they love. Football was once a sport that not many knew about, but now people worldwide are fascinated by it and willing to sacrifice every inch of their lives and money for it. Thus, the future of sports marketing will soon see a new shine of light that can create a new marketing era.

LIMITATIONS OF THE RESEARCH

Several limitations can be seen throughout these studies of brand love towards football. The sample size of this study is relatively small due to the lack of time and resources. We could only gather about 150 respondents, less than the previous research by Martin et al. Also, most of the participants of this research are students, which is quite harmful due to the lack of various age groups. This research mainly uses variables that might not be original. Hence, this limitation could be improved if more time was spent gathering information and respondents.

FUTURE RESEARCH

For future research, the researcher can increase the sample size if given the time and resources. The researchers can think out more components of brand love, which could significantly improve the studies. Adding more questions to the survey would create a significantly better data set and a much more accurate explanation of the study. Researchers could use the data of football fans’ favourite football teams to great use as it showcases the popularity of the football teams. Hence, this research could still grow and expand to a broader topic.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We express our deepest gratitude to UNIVERSITI MALAYSIA SABAH and UNIVERSITI TENAGA NASIONAL for their support and resources throughout this research. Special thanks to the student research assistant whose contributions were crucial to completing this work.

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