Tim Ströbel

Innovations in Sport Management: The Role of Motivations and Value Cocreation at Public Viewing Events

During mega-sport events, such as FIFA World Cup or Olympic Games, Fan Fests and other public viewing events have been developed as an innovative value proposition for watching sports. Those events attract millions of sport spectators worldwide. Event organizers have already realized the tremendous economic potential, yet sport management literature provides little empirical evidence on this innovation in sport management. Therefore, this study investigates motivational drivers for sport consumption of public viewing events and provides a better understanding of innovation-induced value cocreation at sport events. As public viewing represents an innovative mixture of stadium and television, we conduct a literature review of sport spectator motivations and study empirical findings in the stadium, television, and public viewing context. Based on this theoretical background we conduct a quantitative analysis. During the UEFA EURO 2008 in Austria and Switzerland, 498 spectators were interviewed using a standardized questionnaire at official public viewing events. The findings of this analysis reveal two new motivational dimensions for passive sport consumption. Spectators of public viewing events enjoy the freedom to move around and the intercultural contact and therefore the chance to socialize with fan groups from different countries and cultures. Those new motivational dimensions represent key drivers of sport consumption behavior in the context of public viewing events. In addition to those empirical findings, we derive practical implications in order to understand how innovations in sport management such as public viewing events open new ways to create value at sport events.

Is it really all about money? A study on incentives in elite team sports

ABSTRACT Research question: A key task for sports managers of elite sports clubs is to create an ideal environment that enables athletes to perform at their best. Therefore, we investigate the relationship among monetary incentives, organizational support, and athletic performance in elite team sports. Research methods: This study is the first in sports management to calculate the relative effects of non-monetary incentives of organizational support and monetary incentives on individual performance through job satisfaction. Furthermore, we apply an innovative measurement approach of player performance by using individual performance ratings of coaches. We collect questionnaires from 315 athletes and 34 coaches of 19 professional football, ice hockey, and handball clubs in Germany. Results and findings: Two variables of organizational support – namely, integration of family and private problem support – show strong positive effects on athletes’ job satisfaction. Whereas prior studies have focused mainly on monetary incentives, this study reveals a strong relevance of organizational support. Furthermore, the results confirm a strong relationship between player satisfaction and individual performance. Implications: Sports managers need to recognize the relevance of non-monetary incentives of organizational support and integrate them into their management repertoire to improve job satisfaction and, consequently, facilitate top performance of their players. Further research should focus on the effects of non-monetary incentives and other aspects of organizational support. In addition, researchers should use individual performance ratings of coaches, rather than other measures, to evaluate player performance because of their expertise and superior background information.

Co-Branding zwischen Sport und Medien - Eine Analyse des Fallbeispiels Schalke 04 TV

Die Markierung von Produkten und Konsumgutern kann auf eine sehr lange Geschichte zuruckblicken. In Deutschland gab es nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg den entscheidenden Schub fur die Entwicklung neuer Marken. Erst im Laufe der 1970er Jahre entstehen neben Produktmarken erste Dienstleistungsmarken (Bruhn 2001, S. 216ff.). Die letzten zwei Jahrzehnte stehen wiederum im Zeichen hochst unterschiedlicher Markenentwicklungen: Zum einen finden sich so genannte Luxus- und Premiummarken, zum anderen treten aber auch Bereiche wie Sport, Kultur, Umwelt und Soziales, denen bisher keine Beachtung geschenkt wurde, in den Mittelpunkt des Interesses (Adjouri/Stastny 2006, S. 84). Einem neueren Markenverstandnis folgend, das weniger auf die Markierung, sondern mehr auf das Image abstellt, werden hier die Marken in Anlehnung an Esch definiert als „Vorstellungsbilder in den Kopfen der Konsumenten, die eine Identifikations- und Differenzierungsfunktion ubernehmen und das Wahlverhalten pragen“ (Esch 2005, S. 23).

How to reduce turnover intention in team sports? Effect of organizational support on turnover intention of professional team sports athletes

Turnover of employees is a key challenge for companies. The same is true for sports clubs that must set appropriate incentives to decrease their athletes’ turnover intention. As salary caps and team budgets restrict monetary incentives, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of organizational support on turnover intention of professional team sports athletes.,The paper applies a combined approach of qualitative and quantitative research and considers the specific requirements of European professional team sports. First, a qualitative study investigates organizational support in team sports and identifies relevant non-monetary incentives. Second, a quantitative study tests the effects of the identified organizational support incentives on turnover intention using a unique data set of professional team sports athletes. Third, a moderation analysis measures possible effects of age.,Through the qualitative study, three relevant non-monetary incentives could be identified in the context of professional team sports: integration of family (IOF), second career support, and private problem support. The subsequent quantitative study of football, ice hockey and handball athletes assesses the effectiveness of the identified incentives. All three incentives negatively influence athletes’ turnover intention, while IOF has a substantially stronger negative effect on turnover intention for younger athletes.,The findings indicate the importance of organizational support to decrease athletes’ turnover intention. Although money is relevant, sports clubs also need to address non-monetary incentives to decrease their athletes’ turnover intention.

How well do you know your spectators? A study on spectator segmentation based on preference analysis and willingness to pay for tickets

ABSTRACT Research question: Do club managers know enough about their spectators? Fan protests against increasing ticket prices in European sports show the ongoing disconnect between fans and clubs. The purpose of this article is to examine sport event spectators’ preferences for tickets and their willingness to pay (WTP) considering innovative ticket features. This research contributes to existing research on spectator segmentation and ticket pricing. Research methods: This study is the first in sport management literature to apply choice-based conjoint analysis in combination with latent classes. We conduct online surveys of two German basketball clubs and collect data on more than 750 spectators. Results and findings: Benefit segmentation analyses of both spectator groups lead to four spectator segments each, which differ depending on preferences for opposing teams, seat categories, and WTP. The results show that the prevailing assumption of homogeneous spectator preferences in sport management research leads to estimation bias. Implications: Spectator preferences are heterogeneous. Therefore, club managers need to know and understand their spectators to better adjust ticket options. Furthermore, the results provide theoretical contributions for spectator segmentation and ticket pricing literature.

From Sport Club To Stock Company: Does Legal Form Matter For Professionalised Management in Sport?

In many sports, non-profit and for-profit sport organisations compete against each other. For example in tennis, fitness, and snow sports, (non-profit) clubs and (for-profit) centers often offer the same courses. Previous literature has set theoretical comparisons of non-profit sport organisations (NSOs) and for-profit sport organisations (FSOs) and identified the advantages and disadvantages of these institutional arrangements (e.g., Auld & Cuskelly, 2012). Such research defines NSOs as traditional, hindered by volunteer work, and little competitive. However, to date, empirical comparison between non-profit and for-profit sport organisations has rarely been conducted. The assumption is that NSOs in such highly competitive sports have become business-like, shifting their member-orientation towards a customer-orientation that requires increasingly diverse services. The question then arises as to whether, and to what extent, forms of professionalised management differ between business-like NSOs and FSOs. Swiss Ski Schools (SSS) are characterised by their diversity of legal forms, from clubs (NSOs) to stock companies (FSOs). They are therefore suited to a comparison of legal forms and professionalised management. In this study, professionalised management includes the employment of paid staff as well as the strategic management and the implementation of formalised management instruments and documents. According to Nagel, Schlesinger, Bayle, & Giauque (2015), professionalised management leads to performance enhancement. To address this assumption, specific performance measures were examined and compared.

Eignung von Markenbewertungsansätzen im Sport

Marken nehmen heutzutage in unserem Leben eine enorme Bedeutung ein und sind aus unserem Alltag nicht mehr wegzudenken. Die Erfolgsgeschichte von Apple und die damit einhergehende weltweite Markenhysterie im Zusammenhang mit allen durch einen Apfel gekennzeichneten Produkten konnen beispielhaft dafur genannt werden. Diese Entwicklung beschrankt sich dabei nicht auf bestimmte Konsumguter, sondern greift langst auf verschiedenste Lebensbereiche und Branchen uber. Die Beschaftigung mit Marken und die Umsetzung strategischer Markenkonzepte spielen seit Anfang der 2000er Jahre auch vermehrt in der Dienstleistungsbranche und insbesondere im Sportmanagement eine bedeutende Rolle. Im Jahr 2006 belief sich beinahe die Halfte aller neuen Markenanmeldungen im Deutschen Patent- und Markenamt auf Dienstleistungsmarken (vgl. DPMA, Jahresbericht 2006, 2007.).In diesem Zusammenhang gewinnt die Bewertung von Sportmarken zunehmend an Relevanz. In dem Beitrag wird daher die Eignung verschiedener Markenbewertungsansatze im Sport diskutiert.

Sportsponsoring und Co-Branding – innovative Markenstrategien zur Bildung von Allianzen

Das Sponsoring von Sportorganisationen oder Sportveranstaltungen kann auf eine noch relativ junge Geschichte zuruckblicken. Im Rahmen der Olympischen Spiele wurde z. B. erst 1984 in Los Angeles die Vermarktung derart geoffnet, dass durch Sponsoring ein finanzieller Uberschuss erzielt werden konnte. In Deutschland finden sich zum Thema Sportsponsoring auch bereits in den 1970er Jahren erste Ansatze, z. B. fur Trikotsponsoring in der Fusball Bundesliga. Aufgrund der zu dieser Zeit bereits zunehmenden Informationsuberflutung der Konsumenten und der voranschreitenden Anonymisierung der Markte mussten sich werbetreibende Unternehmen stets neue und innovative Strategien im Rahmen ihrer Kommunikation einfallen lassen. Aufgrund der Bedeutung des Sportsponsorings und seiner weit verbreiteten Anwendung in den verschiedensten Bereichen des Sports gilt es auch in Zukunft immer wieder neue und innovative Ansatze zu entwickeln, um Konsumenten gezielt anzusprechen. Daher wird in diesem Beitrag der Einsatz innovativer Co-Branding-Strategien im Rahmen von Sponsoringengagements im Sport anhand von zwei Fallstudien diskutiert.