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Óbuda University e-Bulletin Vol. 7, No. 2, 2017
– 1 –
Factors involved in Hungarian Sports Fans’
Attendance and Merchandise-related Decisions
Anikó Kelemen-Erdős*, Regina Fekete**
* Óbuda University/Keleti Faculty of Business and Management, Budapest, Tavaszmező u. 15-17., H-1084 Hungary
kelemen.aniko@kgk.uni-obuda.hu
** University of Physical Education/Sportmanagement M.Sc., Budapest, Alkotás u. 44, H-1123 Hungary
regina.fekete91@gmail.com
Abstract: This paper describes the most prosperous area of
the sports market: sports merchandising. Sports
merchandising can be defined as a service or product
application that relates to corporate design elements of a
successful person and/or a club, with the aim of transferring
its success and image, to the targeted company. The aim of
this paper is to explore the motivational factors of sports site
attendance and of sports-team-licensed merchandise
purchases on the Hungarian market. The online survey was
conducted using a quota-based sampling method. The result
indicates price sensibility concerning on-site support.
Among sports fans, football supporters are willing to buy
sports-team-licensed merchandise - mainly jerseys and
scarves. In the first section, the paper appraises the market
for sports merchandise and the consumption habits relating
to these products and introduces hypotheses. The second
section assesses findings, limitations and further
management-related opportunities.
Keywords: Sports marketing, sports-team-licensed
merchandise, on-site fans
I. INTRODUCTION
Sports merchandising is one of the most rapidly
emerging and prosperous areas of sports marketing,
generating significant income for businesses worldwide.
In 2015 the income of the sports market reached 20.07
billion US dollars [1] in spite of the fact that revenue from
the black market in this area is also significant. The total
annual income from the market will probably reach 90.9
billion US dollars by 2017 [2]. Using a rough estimate,
sports merchandising may be responsible for 22% of the
entire sports market [2]. Merchandising not only serves
the business goals of organizations but also has a positive
impact on the relationship between the audience and
sportspeople because it increases their personal
involvement in sports.
The aim of this study is to examine the consumption of
sports merchandise in relation to on-site support through
investigating consumer behavior. In this context, the paper
highlights the interaction between on-the-spot fan support
and willingness to buy sports-team merchandise. In
addition to this, the research described in this paper
explores supporters’ preferences for fan-related products.
The first part of the study includes a literature review
about sports marketing and merchandising and defines the
hypotheses. In the section that follows, the results of
empirical research which examined consumers’
preferences for merchandise are described.
II. LITERATURE REVIEW
A. Factors Determining Attendance at Sporting Events
Sports marketing refers to the identification and
satisfaction of sports consumers’ needs and wants [3],
thereby contributing to the development and/or promotion
of sport and recreational activities. Sports marketing
should focus on fans, which provide significant returns
[4]. Sport fans are at some level engaged with a particular
person or group, thus they can express feelings and
sympathy with them. These emotions range in strength
and the following levels of support can be differentiated:
(1) fan; (2) fanatic; (3) fandom; and, (4) fanaticism [see
5]. On-site fans offer support at the venue of the sporting
event. Accordingly, this research focuses on fan-related
activities and preferences.
When there is a wide supporter base, income from
sports products can be significant for the rights holders.
The success of sportspeople may also have an influence
on the success of the rights holder. Sportspeople may be
motivated through use of performance-based rewards, but
this cannot directly impact their ultimate results. Thus,
achievement depends on athletes’ determination,
environmental and technical/technological circumstances,
and even on referees.
The magnitude of sports-related consumption depends
on the event (including factors such as its reputation,
success, and the existence of any supplementary
programs) and economic factors (such as related costs,
but, above all, ticket price) [6]. Principally, internal
motivators such as team success (which is not equal to
team performance, and is one of the external factors in this
framework [7]) determine attendance at sporting events,
and due to this fact the main external hindering factor is
ticket price, although weather and travelling distance to
the event may also have an influence [7]. The cost of
supporting sports performers, including travel costs, are
important in the attendance-related decision making
process [8]. However, it should be noted that although it
may appear paradoxical that some free matches have
empty grandstands, this can be explained by internal
motivational factors - in these cases it is typically
unsuccessful and unpopular teams who are playing, or free
tickets are offered to potential spectators too late).
Furthermore, the appearance and attitudes of other
supporters can affect other fans’ perceptions too; a fact
incorporated into the service marketing model [9]. The
existence of opposing supporters may also have a
detrimental impact on attendance [8].
Supported by the ÚNKP-16-4/III. New National Excellence Program
of the Ministry of Human Capacities.
A. Erdős-Kelemen et al. Factors involved in Hungarian Sports Fans’ Attendance and Merchandise-related Decisions
– 2 –
The research described in this paper is designed to
focus on the defining features of participation which is
why the assumptions are founded on three main factors:
economic (ticket price), environmental (weather
conditions, travelling distance to an event) and the service
experience (the team’s current success, star players,
facility atmosphere, staff readiness, and the defining
parameter: the general experience of the match).
H1: The buying decisions and on-site attendance (vs.
off-site/home viewing) of supporters are affected by the
ticket price, weather conditions, the travelling distance to
the event, the team’s current success, the existence of star
players, the atmosphere of the facility, staff readiness and
match.
B. Willingness to Purchase Sports-Team-Licensed
Merchandise
The corporate identity elements of star teams and
sportsmen create a strong brand image. Sports
merchandising refers to the conveyance of a message from
this brand image to products. One of the main advantages
of this association is that it can improve consumer
judgment and attitudes towards other brands [10].
Moreover, it is the reason that sports consumers associate
themselves with sportspeople (or with their teams),
perfectly fitting the marketer’s present-day goal of
marketing to consumers who seek relationships and
experience. Novel marketing models which place services
and customers in a central position (such as service-
dominant logic or customer-dominant logic) can explain
customer attendance and consumer involvement [11].
Within the framework of merchandising, it is primarily
jerseys, sports accessories, scarves, bags, caps, magazines,
games (such as button football and electronic games)
which are marketed. However, merchandise does not only
refer to objects, but can also include services, people,
organizations and places, or even concepts [12], including,
for example, department stores, television channels (e.g.
Barça TV) or programs. A sports brand can be associated
with any product; not only common items of fandom but
also other apparel or accessories such as smartphones or
waistbands, and also sporting goods, bags, stationery,
toys, decorative items and perfumes, and even fan-related
groceries (e.g. Barcelona chips, Real Madrid coffee sugar,
Fradi beer, Pölöskei Barcelona fruit syrup).
Supporters can express their identity, allegiances and
membership through merchandise [13]. Thus consumption
determines whether a fan’s support is made visible to or
experienced by others. Co-experience (shared presence,
such as watching matches with friends), and on-site
support in particular creates an intimate, rather
sympathetic atmosphere which enhances group cohesion.
This conformity can manifest in the ownership and
purchase of sports merchandise. Football fans are
essentially taking part in the entertainment industry, which
also pertains to commercial relationships [14]. In
accordance with the fact that supporters are willing to buy
sports merchandise, especially on-site fans, the following
hypotheses are defined.
H2: Fans are willing to buy their favorite teams’ sports
merchandise with team emblems.
H3: Supporters who attend games are more willing to
buy sports merchandise.
From the rights holder’s point of view, such
merchandising fosters the acceptance of new products and
shortens the period required for their introduction. The
tactic can also be applied to brand expansion or extension.
For rights holders, especially club owners, license and
franchise agreements increase global market penetration
[15, 16]. Ultimately, if the product does not live up to
expectations – a cardinal risk – rights may be restored to
the rights holder.
Attendance at football matches is driven by dedication
and gender: it is mainly men who participate at team
matches [8]. This kind of emotional drive encourages
them to purchase sports team-licensed merchandise, a fact
to which the following hypothesis refers:
H4: Football fans are more willing to purchase sports
merchandise than other fans.
This piece of research describes the results of an
analysis of market opportunities for sports marketing and
management with an emphasis on sports merchandising
and consumer preferences. It follows the presented
theoretical framework and was undertaken by use of a
consumer survey instrument.
III. RESEARCH METHOD AND SAMPLE
Based on secondary research the empirical investigation
explores the characteristics of the consumer behavior of
fans concerning sports-related consumption on the
Hungarian sports market. The research design is depicted
in Fig. 1.
Quantitative research was carried out within the
framework of online questionnaires. The target population
of the survey consisted of youth from age 18-29 who were
deemed to be open to supporting sports and willing to
purchase sports-team-licensed merchandise and to
responding in an online format. However, the relevance of
the fact that respondents belong to the ‘y’ generation (i.e.
were born between 1980 and 1999) is noted. This
demographic group is characterised by lower levels of
personal contact, so the importance of sporting events
which can act to bring them together is potentially
elevated [17].
During the course of data collection, non-probability
quota sampling techniques were applied, taking into
account the demographic distribution according to census
data from 2015 (Tab. 1). 191 questionnaires were
collected.
Figure 1. Research design
Source: Authors’ own construction
H1: Decision to Attend
Economic factors
Ticket price
Environmental factors
Weather conditions
Travel distance
Service experience
Team’s current success
Star players
Facility atmosphere
Staff readiness
Match experience
H2: Sports merchandise buying
willingness
H3: Merchandise
purchasing depends on
attendance
H4: More likely that
football fans are willing
to buy merchandise
Óbuda University e-Bulletin Vol. 7, No. 2, 2017
– 3 –
TABLE 1. THE SAMPLE ACCORDING TO QUOTA BASED ON HUNGARIAN
CENSUS DATA
Population
distributiona
Population
distribution
Sample size
Sample
distribution
Unit
people
%
people
%
Men
4.695.779
47.6%
81
47.4%
Women
5.159.792
52.4%
90
52.6%
All
9.855.571
100%
171
100%
aThe real census of 2011 is adjusted with births and deaths.
Source: Authors’ own construction based on KSH [18]
Firstly, the sample was screened based on its accuracy
and relevance, leaving 180 surveys. For the second time it
was then scaled to Hungarian census data from 2015.
Based on the census gender distribution (women 52.4%;
men 47.6%), the latter responses were filtered out, so the
surveyed sample comprised 52.6% (i.e. 90) women and
47.4% (i.e. 81) men: accordingly, the data refer to 171
respondents.
Because of the sampling method and limited sample
size this research is not representative, but the findings
may justify further investigation and reveal novel research
opportunities.
IV. RESULTS
Preliminary analysis of the sample indicates the
limitations of the research. The database does not permit
complex mathematical and statistical analyses, although
attempts were made. However, simple multivariate
analyses were undertaken as part of hypothesis testing.
Data were evaluated using the SPSS Statistics 19 software
package.
As stated in H1, on-site supporters are mainly
influenced by the ticket price, travelling distance to
events, staff readiness, their team’s current success,
facility atmosphere, match experience, weather conditions
and existence of star players. In this context, the
determining factors (the key explanatory variables) were
examined, including the ticket price, the travelling
distance, weather conditions, match experience, or rather
the atmosphere of the facility, staff readiness, and the
team’s success and the presence of star players.
Multicollinearity of variables was monitored by
application of multivariate linear regression analysis
during which the reference value of five (VIF>5) was
exceeded by match experience and facility atmosphere,
which were thus excluded. The remaining valid values are
depicted in Tab. 2. Findings of greater than two indicate
strong multicollinearity (e.g. ticket price and travelling
distance) and thus should be treated with caution. In
addition, the variables weather and the appearance of star
players were not built into the model because they were
not found to be significant in linear regression analysis.
The explanatory value (adjusted R2) of the model is
0.693.
Significant T-test findings (p<0.05) indicate the
suitability of the model factors. The model indicates that
support on the sports field is affected by ticket price,
although not significantly. The results of the survey also
indicate that travelling distance is an important factor, so
holding matches in more locations, thereby increasing
travelling convenience, may impact sales. Further research
could extend the hypothesis using other potential
determinants of the service experience such as the role and
co-creation opportunities of supporters.
In the following section we examine the purchasing-
related factors involved in the success of sports
merchandising. The aim of sports organizations is to
satisfy the wants and needs of fans, thereby generating a
significant source of revenue.
H2 addresses whether fans are willing to buy their
favourite teams’ sports merchandise with team trademarks
and/or logos. 60.2% of respondents (103 people) have
already bought one or more of their favourite team
products so the second hypotheses is supported [19]. The
survey mainly addressed respondents about their site-
related products based on an assessment of willingness-to-
buy. Respondents principally purchase jerseys (96 people)
and scarves (72 people) [19]. According to this research,
the key element of consumer choice is quality (89 people)
and, secondly, design (72 people), while price (67 people)
plays only a tertiary role [19].
H3 is related to consumer choice factors and the
proposition that on-site fans are more likely to buy
merchandise. This assumption is based on the evident
proposition that the consumption of products depends on
their potential use, a situation which significantly
influences customer and consumer behavior. Of
considerable importance in this purchasing decision is the
visibility of the purchased item to others: sports
merchandise typically fosters personality identification or
contributes to the individual’s desire, through signaling, to
belong to a group.
To examine the relationship between two variables,
cross-tabulation analysis was performed (Tab. 3). This
form of analysis should be carried out only if the number
of cells exceeds the sample size of ten [20]. One sample
cell included seven, suggesting that the results are of
limited validity. Because of the low cell frequency the
analysis was not sophisticated or worth supplementing
with further factors.
TABLE 2. MULTIVARIATE LINEAR REGRESSION MODEL COEFFICIENTS
Model
Non-standardized
coefficient
Standardized
coefficient
T-test
α
Collinearity
B
Standard
error
Beta
Tolerance
VIF
Constant
1.789
.034
53.210
.000
Ticket price
-.038
.017
-.162
-2.284
.024
.357
2.798
Travelling distance
-.078
.015
-.355
-5.148
.000
.381
2.627
Staff readiness
-.083
.016
-.301
-5.305
.000
.560
1.787
Team’s current success
-.046
.017
-.167
-2.780
.006
.501
1.997
Dependent variable: Visiting sport events.
Source: Authors’ own construction
A. Erdős-Kelemen et al. Factors involved in Hungarian Sports Fans’ Attendance and Merchandise-related Decisions
– 4 –
TABLE 3. RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ATTENDANCE AT MATCHES AND
PURCHASES OF SPORTS MERCHANDISE
Fans have merchandise
On-site support
Yes
No
All
Yes
96
36
132
No
7
32
39
All
103
68
171
Source: Authors’ own construction, N=171
A Pearson’s chi-square test indicates a significant
relationship between the variables (χ2(1) = 37.715,
p<0.05). Based on Cramer’s association coefficient, the
association is moderately strong (V = 0.470).
Accordingly, there exists a relationship between on-site
support and the purchase of sports-related products, so the
third hypothesis should not be rejected.
H4, which refers to the correlation between football
fans and the frequency of purchase of sports merchandise,
was also examined using cross-tabulation. Table 4.
displays the findings.
The results indicate that football fans are more likely to
buy sports-team merchandise (χ2(1) = 26.138, p < 0.05; V
= 0.391) than other sports fans, even if this relationship is
relatively weak.
TABLE 4. CORRELATION BETWEEN FOOTBALL FANS AND OWNING
MERCHANDISE
Fans have merchandise
On-site support
Yes
No
All
Yes
96
36
132
No
7
32
39
All
103
68
171
Source: Authors’ own construction, N=171
The tested hypotheses are indicated based on the
measured variables in Fig. 2. The potential for their
application is highlighted in the conclusion.
Figure 2. Results based on the hypotheses
Source: Authors’ own construction
V. LIMITATIONS OF THE RESEARCH
Limitations related to the methodology which was
applied are described in the previous chapter. In addition
to the above-described topics, an attempt was made to
segment the customer groups in various ways, including
differentiating between those who buy sports merchandise
and those who do not, and to take into account their
distinctive features. Among other variables, product
preferences, visits to sporting competitions, the viewing
location of the broadcasting and other personal
characteristics were considered.
Cluster analysis of the consumer groups would have
enabled better segmentation of those who buy sports
merchandise. However, as the sample contained a
significant number of outliers, screening was necessary.
As a result of this process, a significant portion of the
sample was filtered out, decreasing the validity and
reliability of the final results.
Despite the limitations of the cluster analysis,
discriminant analysis was attempted so as to determine
clusters. The sample was composed of both analytical and
evaluation control samples according to the characteristics
of selected features in order to ensure research validity.
However, the results reveal only a few significant
relationships (such as the fact that sports consumers
mainly prefer scarves, in contrast to the previous findings
of this study). In interpreting the findings, it is not a
negligible problem that the explanatory power of the
model and the accuracy of the classified cases was in
some cases greater than 30% and, in more cases, 50% or
more. The estimated results are thus not able to capture
the relationships effectively, although they do permit
some inferences to be made.
Multi-group discriminant analysis was applied to verify
that home fans, as well as occasional and regular on-site
fans, could be distinguished regarding their consumption
of sports-team-licensed merchandise. This analysis also
proved largely invalid because the proportion of non-
respondents was, at 23%, very high, so that the restricted
sample size limited the effectiveness of the evaluation
considerably.
Despite the issues with the analysis, both the above-
described relationships may serve as the basis for further
research. The approaches, the identification of the
characteristics of support-related products, and greater
knowledge about the relationship between the venues and
sales of sports merchandise can improve, through
segmenting and targeting, the marketing strategy for the
sports merchandise market.
VI. CONCLUDING REMARKS
The market for sports merchandise is significant and
demand is affected by consumption; especially important
is the visibility of products to outside observers.
Consumption characteristics are dependent on the
supporting venue. In the case of on-site fans, consumption
is influenced by the ticket price, the service experience of
the fans, team success, and staff readiness. On-site
football fans are more willing to buy sports merchandise
than other fans, probably because their emotional
involvement is higher.
H1: Decision to Attend
Economic factors
Ticket price
Environmental factors
Weather conditions
Travel distance
Service experience
Team’s current success
Star players
Facility atmosphere
Staff readiness
Match experience
H2: Sports merchandise
buying willingness
H3: Merchandise
purchasing depends on
attendance
H4: More likely that
football fans are willing
to buy merchandise
R2 = 0.693
60,2%
V = 0.470
V = 0.391
3
Óbuda University e-Bulletin Vol. 7, No. 2, 2017
– 5 –
In spite of the diversity of sports-team-licensed
merchandise, customers are willing to buy sports jerseys,
and sometimes scarves.
One managerial implication is that supporters are price
sensitive about the decision to attend sports events so
ticket prices should be defined with caution. Merchandise
companies should emphasize the design and sale of
jerseys and scarves to fans who attend matches, especially
in the case of football supporters.
It would be worthwhile performing a comprehensive
study analyzing the additional determinants of willingness
to purchase sports merchandise. In addition, segmentation
of the consumers of sports merchandise, the preference of
sports consumers and further research that explores
attitudes and consumer satisfaction variables, would
contribute to the establishment of a better-targeted market
strategy.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
We hereby thankfully acknowledge the support of
András Medve, the Dean of Keleti Faculty of Business
and Management at Óbuda University.
We would also like to acknowledge Simon Milton for
assistance with proofreading.
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