Continuing confusion over World Cup sponsors
The 1,002 adults polled across Britain following the World Cup Final struggled to correctly identify eight World Cup sponsors (Coca-Cola, McDonalds, Visa, Adidas, Budweiser, Sony, Emirates, Hyundai) from a list of well-known brands. No sponsor was correctly identified by more than half of those polled, with recognition highest for Coca-Cola (48%) and McDonald's (40%). Even after the tournament, one in five (20%) of the adults polled incorrectly identified Nike as a World Cup sponsor.
Two sponsors actually saw recognition FALL significantly between the opening ceremony and the Final: Coca-Cola (48%, down from 57%) and Adidas (25%, down from 29%). Only two sponsors, Emirates (up from 12% to 17%) and Hyundai (up from 10% to 15%) secured improvements from low pre-tournament levels.
According to Matt Painter, Research Director of Echo Research, "this shows how unconnected organisations are when they sponsor major events - they're getting visibility for their brand on television, but not working these big ticket items effectively in the media through both paid for and non-paid-for channels, nor are they engaging the public through social media discussions. With so much 'noise' going on, companies have to work harder than this to ensure better bang for their
bucks."
Sponsors' Motives
The tournament has also reinforced the British public's scepticism about sponsors' motives. When asked to select reasons why a company would sponsor the World Cup, fewer than one in ten (9%, down from 13% pre-tournament) agreed it was "because they care about football and its supporters" and one in twenty (5%, down from 9% pre-tournament) "because they care about issues of health, fitness and well-being". Despite extensive on-the-ground sponsorship activities in
South Africa, there was no significant change in the proportion agreeing that it was "because they care about South Africa and its people". By contrast, 85% of those polled agreed it was "to get their company name or logo on television", up from 81% pre-tournament.
Methodology
Pre-tournament Internet Omnibus survey of 1005 GB adults aged 16-64 weighted to represent the adult population, conducted 9th-10th June 2010.
Post-tournament Internet Omnibus survey of 1002 GB adults aged 16-64 weighted to represent the adult population, conducted 13th-15th July 2010.
Significance calculated at the 95% confidence level.
About Echo
Based in London, Paris, New York and Singapore, Echo Research provides independent reputation analysis through stakeholder surveys and media analysis for FTSE and Fortune 100 organisations, the public sector and not-for-profits. Winners of some 75 industry awards for excellence in research, Echo has provided research and counsel for corporate sports sponsorship to Barclays Bank, Barclaycard, Lloyds Banking Group and JPMorgan Chase, among others.
For further information:
Matt Painter, head of Research +44 (0) 20 7608 1113 mattp@echoresearch.com
Or Ben Lloyd, Senior Director +44 (0) 20 7608 1113 benl@echoresearch.com
