Download - Does the FIFA video game drive Brand Loyalty
Changing the game:
An Investigation on the Potential of Electronic Arts' FIFA
Soccer Video Game to Drive Soccer Club Brand Loyalty Among
Gamers
Evan Baechler
Prof. Whitney Wagoner | Prof. Susanna Lim | Mr. David Bruce
What is FIFA
Multiplayer online | Multiplayer offline / local | single player
Video
“FIFA is an authentic representation of
the real club soccer environment” - Matt Mahar, former Lead FIFA online producer
English
Spanish French Argentinean
Belgian English English Ivorian
Serbian
Manchester City FC | Italian Manager | UEA Owner
”Soccer is much further along in the process of
globalization than any other economy on the planet.” -Globalization Journalist F. Foer
Argentinean
Bosnian
A Global Strategy
•Mid 90s Strategic Shift
•Global Brand = Huge opportunities
•Sponsors
•Media Distribution
•Licensing
• Economies of Scale
Global is Resource-Intensive, Difficult to maintain
Time Af
fin
ity / E
ng
agem
ent
Digital is a solution Exhibition tours | Player signings | IPO | fan shops | club partnerships | digital
•Digital platforms ‘Fill in the gaps’
•Constant brand presence
•E-commerce
•Customer service
•Engagement
•China.com | Mobile | Tailored Content |
“One United” | VISA
•Digital is complex
Video games : a powerful opportunity
•Digital environment is complex
•Control is difficult
•Videogames :
•Intimate*
•controlled
•Realistic
•Relevant
Video games are Realistic
Real
Rendered
Video games are Relevant
•Video Game Revenue > Box Office Revenue
in the US, 2010:
•72% of households played
•25.1 Billion USD
FIFA is Most popular sports game
•100m copies sold
•Top seller in every Global Region
Research Focus Hypothesis:
Electronic Arts’ FIFA Soccer video game is a powerful digital, global expansion tool
for Soccer Clubs.
Investigation:
•Does FIFA Drive brand loyalty toward foreign soccer clubs?
•how does this information affect the sports business environment?
•further research?
Literature Review: Brand Loyalty Attitude: Behavior: (not always purchase)
psychological commitment Congruent Brand Engagement
•Leads to a more valuable, more profitable org.
•Building loyalty is a process:
•Frequency / Satisfaction drive loyalty
2-dimensional
Informational Process
Identification Process
Volitional Process
Likert-Scale Equivalents
1................2…….………3……….….…4………..….…5………..….6
Frequency of Brand Exposure
Literature Review: Loyalty & Sports
Introduction Preference Formation
Preference Strengthened
Emerging Commitment
Identification
Preference Building Emerging Loyalty True Loyalty
•Fans vs Participants
•Self-Esteem
•Fan Socialization process
•Socialization agents: family, peers, school, community, and media
Literature Review: Video Games & Loyalty
•Violence: Video Games affect Attitude & Behavior
•More realistic Stronger effect
•RPGs: Gamers develop relationships with characters
•FIFA expertise self-esteem loyalty to game
Methodology
Survey: 368 Responses
•Screener Questions Isolate FIFA as loyalty-inducing variable
•Independent Variables: FIFA engagement
•Dependent variables: Loyalty scales
•Additional questions:
•Prior engagement with soccer
•Qualitative questions
•Social questions
•Implication Interviews: EA, Nike, MLS, ESPN
3-stage analysis
1 . N=23 2 . N=70 3 . N=171
No previous
relationship with team
No previous
relationship with
soccer
Average protocols
No previous
relationship with team
Investigated other
soccer variables
Double-checked #1
Ordinal Regression
Anyone identifying as a
FIFA user
Qualitative Questions
Social Gaming
Questions
Synthesis
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
strongly
Agree
Agree Somehwhat
Agree
Neighter Agree
nor Disagree
Somehwhat
Disagree
Disagree strongly
Disagree
Num
ber
of R
espo
nse
s
FIFA has made me more loyal to my FIFA team outside the video game?
respondents who Agreed FIFA made them more loyal to their favorite
FIFA team
67%
13% 20%
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
<1
month
1-6 mo. 6-12
mo.
1-2
years
2-4 yr. 4-6 yr.
Av
erag
e P
er-Q
ues
tio
n L
oy
alt
y S
core
Length of Relationship With FIFA Club
Attitudinal
Loyalty
Behavioral
Loyalty
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
4.5
Amateur Semi-pro Pro World
Class
Legendary
Av
era
ge
Per
-Qu
esti
on
Loy
alt
y S
core
Change in FIFA Expertise
Attitudinal
Loyalty
Behavioral
Loyalty 1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
4.5
5
Av
era
ge
Per
-Qu
esti
on
Lo
yalt
y S
core
How Frequently Respondents Switch Clubs
Attitudinal
Loyalty
Behavioral
Loyalty
0.5 1
1.5 2
2.5 3
3.5 4
4.5
Av
erag
e p
er-q
ues
tio
n l
oy
alt
y s
core
How Frequently Respondents Play FIFA
Attitudinal
Loyalty
Behavioral
Loyalty
stage 1 Analysis: Avg. Protocols Change in average reported loyalty scores given FIFA engagement
stage 2 Analysis: Ordinal Regression
•Ordinal Regression:
•for scale-based, non-discrete variables
•Reports Probabilities
•Independent variables: Dummy Variables (yes / No variables)
• Soccer player?
•Hometown club supporter
•FIFA Expert
•FIFA team Loyal
Soccer
Player
Hometown
Club Loyal FIFA Expert
FIFA team
Loyal
stage 3 analysis: synthesis
Qualitative analysis:
FIFA Informs | FIFA Is social | Virtual Players are Important
Social-Gaming Questions:
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Play by
yourself
Play offline
multi-player
play online
multi-player
2 2.4 2.8 3.2 3.6 4 4.4 4.8
You Lose with your FIFA team in
the video game to the computer
You Lose with your FIFA team in
the video game to a human during
offline multiplayer
You lose with your FIFA team in
the video game to a human durring
online Multiplayer
Your FIFA team loses a real game
outside of the video game
1=not at all disappointed
7=very disappointed
Average Disappointment given Scenarios involving
favorite FIFA Club
Introduction Preference Avidity
Social Motives
Less FIFA Engagement More
FIFA facilitates
knowledge, awareness,
and interest
around soccer
FIFA facilitates
connections with
club brand elements
(players).
Additional brand
engagements
catalyze loyalty.
Lower Value of Fan to Club Higher
FIFA Fan Socialization process
"I would have absolutely zero interest in Chelsea if it
wasn't for the game. The game is the sole driver of my
fandom."
"FIFA was how I got into European Soccer. Before my
FIFA days, I didn't even care about the World Cup. Now
soccer has become my career. I am employed as an
agent for FC Barcelona, to put on youth camps in the
United States."
Errors & Improvements
Errors in the Sample:
•Sample Size
•Low Sample Diversity Predictor of small fan population
Errors in Method:
•Scales are limiting
•No control group
Improvements:
•Use FIFA User Data instead of scales
•Compare to loyal non-gamers
Implications •FIFA is an information source
•FIFA becomes a viable Brand marketing medium
•Partnership opportunities / integrations
•EA gains bargaining power
Shifts in the FIFA Value Chain:
License
Develop
FIFA
product
Distr. &
sell
Manage
& Update
This study provides evidence that FIFA drives loyalty toward soccer clubs.
What Else can we learn?
League brands:
Relevant to
building MLS?
Other sports games /
Other samples:
•Other cultural groups
•Individual sports games
Emerging Tech:
Body movement-
controlled video
games
How / Why players
Select teams:
Inform Specific tactics for
elevating teams
Further research
Maintain Authenticity:
Within FIFA
Maintain Authenticity:
At Soccer’s Grassroots Core
Acknowledgements
Prof. Whitney Wagoner | Prof. Susanna Lim | Mr. David Bruce
Prof. Robert Madrigal | Prof. Ted Helvoigt | Warsaw | CHC
Prof. Michele Henney | Prof. Doug | Wilson Kyle & don
Questions &
Comments