Criticism of the host country Qatar, FIFA and the German Football Association (DFB), plus the national team's elimination in the preliminary round: the enthusiasm of soccer fans in Germany is at an all-time low. Prof. Dr. Axel Faix from the Fachhochschule Dortmund, in cooperation with the University of Würzburg and the online platform "FanQ", has evaluated the mood of soccer fans. He describes a split in the entire fan scene.
55% of those surveyed stated that they had watched fewer matches live than at previous World Cups. At the same time, 23% watched just as many games and 19.4% even more than at previous tournaments. And even though two thirds of respondents felt less excitement, 32% said they were just as excited or even more excited than at previous World Cups. "The cluster analysis reveals two clearly separable groups of fans that are roughly the same size," says Prof. Dr. Axel Faix. "They differ primarily in terms of the demands placed on the DFB and the players and their socio-political role."
How much social responsibility must sport assume?
While one half demanded that the association and players take a clear stance on social issues (focus on society), the other half was dominated by an interest in sport (focus on soccer). The latter clearly rejected demands for positioning (keyword: "one-love" bond). "In the socially focused cluster, fans watched fewer games and their emotional enthusiasm was usually lower," reports Prof. Faix. Negative influences were the handling of human rights in Qatar and the behavior of FIFA. "The enthusiasm of the fans is also lower in the football-focused cluster," says Prof. Faix. However, they attributed this to the sporting performance of the national team, the lack of soccer culture in the host country and the tournament being held shortly before Christmas. Nevertheless, the number of matches watched was similar to previous tournaments.
"Our study shows once again that opinions differ on the role of soccer in society," concludes Prof. Faix. A challenging environment for sponsors and advertising partners. After all, the socially oriented fans in particular expect sponsors to criticize and, if necessary, distance themselves, according to the economist from Fachhochschule Dortmund. With a view to the 2024 European Championships in Germany, he advises advertising partners to carry out a communication assessment in order to analyze the interactions between the players. "EURO 24 will be held under the umbrella of UEFA, which has a similarly bad reputation as FIFA," says Prof. Faix. Here too, a rather critical environment could serve as a "catalyst", putting companies under pressure in the event of unpopular actions by UEFA, for example, and damaging the desired positive image transfer from sponsors.
Background:
For the follow-up survey to the 2022 World Cup study series, "FanQ" surveyed more than 3,500 soccer fans in Germany from December 5 to 7, 2022. Prof. Dr. Axel Faix from the Faculty of Business Studies at Dortmund University of Applied Sciences and Prof. Dr. Harald Lange from the Institute of Sports Science at the University of Würzburg contributed to the study.