The sports and fashion industries have always been closely intertwined, with talented athletes strutting alongside some of the biggest names in fashion at sporting events around the world. With so many luxury brands ensuring athletes’ star power through ambassadorships, brand deals and collaborations, their strong relationships are more evident than ever. The infiltration of popular culture into sports appears to be due to the strong presence and influence of social media and the emergence of sports documentaries. These media give fans insight into athletes’ personal lives, showing them as relatable human beings beyond their athletic abilities. This real-world perspective creates a broader fan base and strengthens the loyalty of your existing group of supporters. This is how professional athletes gain influence over A-list celebrities, making it a great marketing tool for brands and a great opportunity to reach your target audience, which will lead to higher profits.
In addition to the undeniable influence of the athletes themselves, major sporting events such as the Olympics, World Cup, Super Bowl, Premier League and Grand Prix attract huge viewership worldwide. Additionally, these highly publicized events are the perfect opportunity for brands to capture the public eye and discover rising stars in the world of sports. These large-scale events present enormous advertising opportunities for brands, given the correlation between highly anticipated events and outstanding viewership. This gives your brand a powerful marketing tool that can generate much more revenue.
Read more: The importance of Olympic team uniforms and the designers who create them
athlete ambassador
Social media is always looking for the next big thing. This makes it an effective tool for brands to leverage emerging talent in the world of sports to promote and attract attention to their creations. The advantage of rising stars in sports is that the market for them is less competitive and they have tremendous potential to attract public attention to the next generation of sports stars. Italian fashion house Gucci executed it to perfection by collaborating with Italian tennis player Jannik Sinner. The then 22-year-old became the first player in Wimbledon’s 146-year history to wear a luxury logo bag, creating a bespoke duffel bag in a unique blue and yellow colorway featuring the house’s classic monogram print and the player’s name embroidered on it. The partnership proved successful, going viral and leading to their first Grand Slam win at the Australian Open a few months later. He was photographed holding the prestigious trophy, wearing a Gucci duffel and a Gucci get-up. Moreover, Gucci’s smart investment in young talent Jannik Sinner resulted in significant media coverage, greater engagement, and millions of tennis fans seeing their products.
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exclusive partnership
Football is the most popular sport in the world, boasting valuable athletes and a large fan community. Additionally, as announced by FIFA, the 2022 World Cup was very successful, boasting a viewership of 1.5 billion people. Football has a clear demographic appeal, reaching audiences of all ages, genders and socioeconomic backgrounds. The influence of athletes in this sport is undeniable. So the marketing potential is through the roof. Numerous streetwear brands have taken advantage of this and collaborated with football teams to create exclusive kits. Fittingly, much of sports culture is heavily influenced by streetwear, which has elements of sportswear and basic characteristics associated with youth culture.
An example can be seen in the case of the famous football team Arsenal and the Maharishi. The collaboration between London-based streetwear brand Maharishi and London club Arsenal came together organically as both boast a rich heritage rooted in London. The move was a win for Maharishi, best known for his cult London streetwear label. We now have access to the club’s global fan base, increased brand awareness globally and the potential to enter new markets overseas. In addition to an expanded audience, factors such as strategic logo placement, social media posts, and exclusivity work together to create an ideal marketing system. For example, if a famous athlete wears a jersey, the audience may be instantly swayed. Their star power at matches gives them credibility and influence, allowing brands to get the best exposure in addition to strategically placing their logos to ensure continued brand visibility.
Read more: An in-depth look at fashion’s penchant for controversial creations
Celebrity influence and trends
It is also worth noting that celebrities frequently appear at important sporting events, generating media attention and buzz. These mixes between influencers are usually widely publicized on social media by fans, social media teams, and the personalities themselves, garnering tons of engagement and clicks. Celebrities may also be attracted to the exclusivity of anything – a stadium box, courtside seats or an F1 paddock club. Celebrities are likely to come dressed in 90s clothing. In these cases, celebrities’ ensembles for these events have sparked a trend of extravagance at these sporting events, leaving fans excited to see what NBA courtside attire or Formula 1 grid walk attire they will see and who will wear them. Therefore, by leveraging the combined influence of celebrities and athletes, brands can gain widespread visibility and market their products to the public in a more organic way, while still increasing brand awareness.
Take for example Tommy Hilfiger, official outfitter of the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team, which recently participated in the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix. The brand has been worn by drivers Lewis Hamilton and George Russell, and supermodel Kendall Jenner, among others. And without overtly pushing a logo or promoting a specific product, the brand cleverly used its considerable star power to generate media attention and brand awareness. The mix of drivers and models was posted essentially exclusively through Tommy Hilfiger’s social media, along with updates and “Hot Laps” videos, a common occurrence in the sport that tend to generate significant engagement. Here, the Miami Grand Prix was used as a huge marketing tool to gain brand credibility, media participation, and brand awareness through the strategic appearance of celebrities.
All things considered, the current unwavering social media presence, celebrity culture, and idolization of professional athletes provide a reliable means for brands to use massively-viewed sporting events as a marketing tool. Using these events strategically amplifies your brand image, increases brand awareness, and engages your audience to increase sales and profits. With the ever-growing and ever-changing state of the sports industry, the influence of athletes in the fashion world will only become more important in terms of their ability to influence and promote brands. Therefore, there is tremendous potential in investing in the sports industry as a marketing tool. A brand’s profound cultural impact allows it to not only reach a wider audience, but also foster lasting relationships with consumers based on the relevance and credibility that athletes can provide.
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