Brand communities in the sports industry: theoretical foundations and contemporary transformations
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.26906/EiR.2026.1%20(100).4379Keywords:
brand community, sports branding, fan identification, digital communities, toxicity, community management, social identity, corporate governanceAbstract
The article presents a comprehensive theoretical analysis of the brand community concept in the context of the sports industry, tracing its evolution from the foundational triad of constitutive markers established by Muniz and O'Guinn through network models advanced by McAlexander et al. to contemporary investigations of hybrid online–offline forms and the destructive dimension of fan communities. The study employs a systematic literature review, comparative conceptual analysis, and synthesis of theoretical propositions as its methodological foundation.Seven specific characteristics are identified that fundamentally distinguish sports fan communities from generic brand community analogues: extreme emotional intensity driven by unpredictable competition outcomes; a core identity function where team affiliation becomes a central component of the fan's self-concept; the BIRGing and CORFing dynamic absent in standard consumer contexts; pronounced territorial embeddedness; a clear hierarchical structure separating the ultras core from the casual periphery; intergenerational loyalty transmission; and elevated destructive risk potential. These characteristics necessitate differentiated, rather than transposed, management approaches.Digital transformation has fundamentally reshaped the architecture of sports fan communities without eliminating their communal essence. Key consequences include the redistribution of narrative power from clubs to communities, the strengthening of horizontal member-to-member bonds relative to vertical brand relationships, and algorithmic mediation that systematically amplifies more radical voices, deepening internal polarisation.A typology of five destructive risk types is developed – online toxicity, ultras radicalisation, anti-brand behaviour, exclusivity barriers, and dependency – each paired with specific management instruments. The central practical finding is that fan alienation from club governance processes is a systemic predictor of community toxicity across cultural contexts, making community management fundamentally a governance challenge. The results provide sports organisation managers with a structured framework for diagnosing community deficiencies and designing differentiated fan engagement strategies.
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1. Muniz, A. M., & O'Guinn, T. C. (2001). Brand community. Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 27, no. 4, pp. 412–432.
2. McAlexander, J. H., Schouten, J. W., & Koenig, H. F. (2002). Building brand community. Journal of Marketing, vol. 66, no. 1, pp. 38–54.
3. Schouten, J. W., & McAlexander, J. H. (1995). Subcultures of consumption: An ethnography of the new bikers. Journal of Consumer Research, vol. 22, no. 1, pp. 43–61.
4. Laroche, M., Habibi, M. R., & Richard, M.-O. (2012). To be or not to be in social media: How brand loyalty is affected by social media? International Journal of Information Management, vol. 32, no. 5, pp. 401–410.
5. Dessart, L., Veloutsou, C., & Morgan-Thomas, A. (2015). Consumer engagement in online brand communities: A social media perspective. Journal of Product & Brand Management, vol. 24, no. 1, pp. 28–42.
6. Hollebeek, L. D., Sprott, D. E., & Brady, M. K. (2021). Rise of the machines? Customer engagement in automated service interactions. Journal of Service Research, vol. 24, no. 1, pp. 3–8.
7. Achen, R. M. (2023). Examining the dark side of online brand communities in collegiate athletics. Journal of Sport Management, vol. 37, no. 2, pp. 102–115.
8. Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. C. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. In W. G. Austin & S. Worchel (Eds.), The Social Psychology of Intergroup Relations (pp. 33–47). Brooks-Cole.
9. Heere, B., & James, J. D. (2007). Sports teams and their communities: Examining the influence of external group identities on team identity. Journal of Sport Management, vol. 21, no. 3, pp. 319–337.
10. Wann, D. L., & Branscombe, N. R. (1993). Sports fans: Measuring degree of identification with their team. International Journal of Sport Psychology, vol. 24, no. 1, pp. 1–17.
11. Cialdini, R. B., Borden, R. J., Thorne, A., Walker, M. R., Freeman, S., & Sloan, L. R. (1976). Basking in reflected glory: Three (football) field studies. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, vol. 34, no. 3, pp. 366–375.
12. Funk, D. C., & James, J. D. (2001). The psychological continuum model: A conceptual framework for understanding an individual's psychological connection to sport. Sport Management Review, vol. 4, no. 2, pp. 119–150.
13. Trail, G. T., Anderson, D. F., & Fink, J. S. (2005). Consumer satisfaction and identity theory. Sport Marketing Quarterly, vol. 14, no. 2, pp. 98–111.
14. Parganas, P., Anagnostopoulos, C., & Chadwick, S. (2015). 'You'll never tweet alone': Managing sports brands through social media. Journal of Brand Management, vol. 22, no. 7, pp. 551–568.
15. Kaplan, A. M., & Haenlein, M. (2010). Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of social media. Business Horizons, vol. 53, no. 1, pp. 59–68.
16. Yoshida, M., Gordon, B. S., Nakazawa, M., & Biscaia, R. (2015). Conceptualization and measurement of fan engagement. Journal of Sport Management, vol. 29, no. 4, pp. 399–411.
17. Stavros, C., Meng, M. D., Westberg, K., & Farrelly, F. (2014). Understanding fan motivation for interacting on social media. Sport Management Review, vol. 17, no. 4, pp. 455–469.
18. Kwak, D. H., Kim, Y. K., & Zimmerman, M. H. (2010). User- versus mainstream-media-generated content: Media source, message valence, and team identification. Journal of Sport Management, vol. 24, no. 3, pp. 311–331.
19. Cikara, M., Botvinick, M. M., & Fiske, S. T. (2011). Us versus them: Social identity shapes neural responses to intergroup competition and harm. Psychological Science, vol. 22, no. 3, pp. 306–313.
20. Rohde, M., & Breuer, C. (2016). The market for football club investors: A review of theory and empirical evidence from professional European football. European Sport Management Quarterly, vol. 16, no. 3, pp. 247–268.
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