Sport Marketing - Sport Customer

So who is the sport consumer?
There has been much discussion on the true identity of the consumer for a sport facility.
Traditionally, they were grouped into two categories – participants (individuals who are involved
or play a part in a spectacle – such as a sport event or concert) and spectators (individuals who are
present and observe a spectacle such as a sport event or concert). While these definitions are
generic in nature and encompass a wide range of individuals, there is a need to take a closer look
into who the sport consumer is and understand that the sport facility manager looks at the sport
consumer in smaller, more detailed categories.
From the participant point of view, the sport facility manager must understand the needs of the
players, the coaches, the trainers, and management. Sport facility managers market their facility
to these constituents every day, ranging from the quality of the field/court of play to the amenities
of the offices and locker rooms. The participants are the direct internal clients of the sport facility,
and it is the goal of the sport facility manager to meet the needs and wants of these clients in
order to assure continued use of the facility by those clients.
From the spectator point of view, the sport facility manager must understand the various
external consumers of the sport facility. In a study conducted by A.T. Kearney, an innovative,
corporate-focused management consulting firm that provides management advice concerning
issues on CEO agenda, conducted a study to classify the sport consumer into different segments.
They defined the sport consumer as either traditional or new. Traditional sport consumers
included sport fanatics and club/team loyalists, and new sports consumers were segmented into
social viewers, opportunistic viewers, star-struck spectators, and sport indifferent consumers.
Traditional sport consumers

There are two categories of traditional sport consumers – sport fanatics and club/team
loyalists. Sport fanatics are individuals who share a persistent interest in the sport and tend to be
most loyal to their team and the associated facilities. Demographically, sport fanatics are
predominantly young, male, and either actively participate in or attend sporting events. They
diligently follow news and scores and have significant knowledge of sports, team, and facility
statistics, and use multiple media and new technologies during their attendance at sporting events
to enhance their experience. The majority of the money they spend on sport is related to
merchandise and associated peripherals. Club/team loyalists do not take fanaticism to the extreme
level, but they tend to be very loyal to a particular club or team – and hence a facility. After all,
© 2010 Butterworth-Heinemann
sport fanatics are the most likely group to attend sporting event and spend significant money on
team-related products and services both at the venue and in associated stores.
New sport consumers

With the implementation of new technologies and expanded television/media coverage, a new
crop of sport consumers has evolved. These individuals are not necessarily the fanatics and
loyalists of yesteryear – but have become integral consumers for a sport facility and the
associated events.
Social viewers use sports as a tool for social interaction – mainly as a place to be seen by
those who matter, and for meetings by corporate consumers who use sports events to meet with
clients or business friends. These consumers are not necessarily loyal to any club or team, but
they are happy to spend significant money – for corporate suites and related facility services
(food/beverage, technology) – on behalf of their company.
Opportunistic viewers are individuals who typically consume sports through traditional
channels such as television or the Internet, and will attend a sport event when asked by friends.
To these consumers, sports are simply one form of entertainment, and there are many others that
carry equal weight – facility managers want to market the additional opportunities to these
consumers because if they can entice these individuals that their money is best spent on the
opportunity to see a sport event in the facility, these consumers will take it.
Star-struck spectators are consumers who tend to follow a superstar rather than a team or
sport. Many believe that this has been created by the significant influence of fantasy sports. The
goal is to capture the hearts of these consumers and transfer it to a team or a sport before the star
retires (or moves on to another team), hence getting them into the facility as soon as possible to
be a part of the experience.
Sport indifferent consumers are individuals who are not very much interested in sport teams,
sporting events, or sport programming and only attend or read about major events that everyone
seems to be interested in. Facility managers seek to market the experience in the facility to these
consumers so that they might return for other events of interest in the future.
Source: Adapted from A.T. Kearney. (2003). The new sports consumer. Retrieved March 16,
2009 from http://www.atkforum.com.cn/index.php?
option=com_docman&task=doc_download&gid=98
Suggested discussion topics
© 2010 Butterworth-Heinemann 2
1. By percentage, how would you balance coverage of each category of
traditional and new sport consumers within your marketing plan and efforts?
Justify your answer with research and logic.
2. Research the escalator concept in sport marketing and explain the

correlations between the elements of that concept and marketing towards the
traditional and new sport consumers as discussed above.
© 2010 Butterworth-Heinemann 3

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So who is the sport consumer?

Traditional sport consumers

New sport consumers

Suggested discussion topics

2. Research the escalator concept in sport marketing and explain the

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