Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- Top takeaways
- Market overview
- Social awareness is intertwined in sports
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- Figure 1: Sports fandom and awareness of social causes by sport, November 2020
- Impact of COVID-19 on sports and social awareness
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- Figure 2: Short-, medium- and long-term impact of COVID-19 on sports and social awareness, January 2021
- Opportunities and challenges
- Sports need to continue 2020 GOTV efforts to non-presidential elections
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- Figure 3: Sporting arenas as polling locations
- Promote social issues through the lens of sports
- Support social justice initiatives through merchandise
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- Figure 4: Supporting social issues through merchandise
- Sports involvement leads to augmented support of social issues and brands
- Supporting social issues runs the risk of turning off a subset of consumers
The Market – Key Takeaways
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- Sports and social awareness reach new heights in 2020
- Sports look to open doors through new education opportunities
- Sports and BLM become further intertwined
- Merchandise offers new way for fans to support social issues
The Market
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- Social awareness is intertwined in sports
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- Figure 5: Naomi Osaka facemasks of police brutality victims
- Figure 6: Sports fandom and awareness of social causes by sport, November 2020
- Impact of COVID-19 on sports and social awareness
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- Figure 7: Short-, medium- and long-term impact of COVID-19 on sports and social awareness, January 2021
- Lockdown
- Re-emergence
- Recovery
- COVID-19: US context
- Learnings from the last recession
Market Factors
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- Sports look to open new doors through new education opportunities
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- Figure 8: Damian Lillard’s internship program
- Increase diversity in sports leadership
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- Figure 9: Diversity in sports leadership
- Increased focus on standing for values and ethical behavior
- Sports and BLM are inextricably linked
Market Opportunities
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- Sports entities can continue to encourage voting
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- Figure 10: Sports efforts for civic engagement
- Use marketing efforts to bring attention to social issues
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- Figure 11: Promoting social issues through marketing
- Support social justice initiatives through merchandise
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- Figure 12: Supporting social issues through merchandise
- Promoting Black owned businesses
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- Figure 13: Bud Light promoting Black-owned restaurants
Companies and Brands – Key Takeaways
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- Dove Men+Care highlights trend of sports partnerships with likeminded athletes
- The WNBA continues history of being a leader in social activism
- Brands use stadium naming rights to highlight sustainability
Competitive Strategies
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- Dove Men+Care forms sports partnerships with likeminded athletes
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- Figure 14: Jaylen Brown and Dove partnership promoting social issues
- WNBA continues to lead the way on active stands for social issues
- Crown Royal uses football to help promote social issues
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- Figure 15: Crown Royal using football to give back
- Stadium naming rights a target for sustainability efforts
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- Figure 16: Brands leverage stadium naming rights to support causes
The Consumer – Key Takeaways
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- Consumers favor sports’ involvement in social issues
- Sports have tremendous power to influence consumers’ views and behavior
- Sports entities should use position of power for the greater good
Consumer Trends Impacting Sports and Social Awareness
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- Surroundings
- Rights
- Identity
- Wellbeing
Exploring Sports and Social Awareness
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- Majority of consumers favor sports’ involvement in social issues
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- Figure 17: Sports paired viewpoints, November 2020
- Promote social issues during games to have greatest reach and impact
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- Figure 18: Method of social issue integration in sports, November 2020
- Sports fans focus on more than just the game
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- Figure 19: Awareness of social issues in sports, by issue, November 2020
Causes Sports Can Support
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- The causes consumers feel are most important for sports’ support
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- Figure 20: Most important social issues for sports to support, by rank, November 2020
- Continuing COVID-19 relief through sports
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- Figure 21: Fanatics making PPE out of jersey fabric
- DEI initiatives a focus for consumers, and brands
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- Figure 22: Most important social issues for sports to support, by race, November 2020
- Sports can make an immediate impact locally
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- Figure 23: Sports giving back locally
- Sports involvement in health and wellness saves lives
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- Figure 24: Sports fandoms supporting charitable initiatives
Influence of Social Issues on Consumer Behavior
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- Sports have tremendous power to influence consumers’ views and behavior
- Sports lead to an increase in awareness and education of social issues
- Sports entities can lead by example
- Brands still run the risk of turning off a subset of consumers
Sports Have an Obligation to Use Its Platform for Change
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- Sports should use position of power for the greater good
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- Figure 25: Sports attitudes, November 2020
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
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- Data sources
- Consumer survey data
- Consumer qualitative research
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
Appendix – The Consumer
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- Figure 26: Demographics of positive paired viewpoint, by generation and by race, November 2020
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- Figure 27: Sports and social issues behaviors, by generation, November 2020
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- Figure 28: Sports attitudes, by generation, November 2020
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- Figure 29: Sports attitudes, by race, November 2020
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