Study Reveals Sport’s Most Influential Brands

Creative agency Ear to the Ground has released the results of a new study revealing the world’s ‘top 40 most culturally relevant’ brands in sport.

Created in collaboration with the agency’s network of ‘culturally connected fans’, its Fan Intelligence Network, the index aims to provide brands with a ranking based on their influence on culture through sport. The agency also says it aims to create a definition about what it means for a brand to be considered culturally relevant.

According to the findings, sportswear brand adidas came out on top. The brand was also the winner of the Innovative Brand of the Year award, in association with Wiggin, at the Sport Industry Awards 2020.

The brand beat out its rival Nike, as well as the NBA, which also featured highly in terms of cultural relevance. Despite the fact that only 40% of fans involved in the research reported liking basketball, Netflix series The Last Dance, the death of Kobe Bryant, and the sport’s involvement in the Black Lives Matter movement saw the sport have an impact outside of North America.

“With the Fan Intelligence® Network closely following and directing where culture is going next, we created a methodology that moved away from the brands who were only capturing market share and focussed in on those who were using sport as a platform to influence culture and effect change,” said Owen Laverty, Director of Fan Intelligence, Ear to the Ground.
 
“In this respect, we are talking about ‘culture’ in its widest sense – a living breathing entity which pervades every aspect of behaviour. By tracking the shifting moods and opinions of these culturally connected fans, we learn about their attitudes and their future expectations. In an era of relentless change, with a global pandemic changing sport as we know it, cultural relevance might just become the most important measure for brands moving forward.”

According to the agency, the study will be repeated and released each year, and was taken from a global sample of fans across Europe, Asia & North America.