The Naming Right Deal – Assessment of the European Market and the Fans’ Attitudes

Abstract

The dissertation purpose was to establish an overview of the actual situation on the Naming Right market in the European market and to provide insights about the different elements that compose the reaction of the fan. This a new practice in Europe, only massively developed before the 2006 World Cup hosted by Germany. The methodology was to understand the current situation in Europe through different countries and different sports and to analyse the different reactions posted by the fans on the forums related to the clubs news. It was obvious that there is real differences between the North American and the European market in terms of market development. The European countries can be divided in two subparts within which France, Italy and Spain are the most backward countries and United Kingdom and especially Germany that are really forward. The fans attitudes has been divided upon three themes: Culture related, Finance related and Globalisation related. This research has pointed out two main element in relation to the fans attitudes towards the Naming rights deals, this was that the culture is an essential part of the club and that they could have negative reactions if they understand that this practice may distort the club history. The second important matter concerns the branding from the naming right owner, the communication needs to be thought carefully by the brand.