The Damage to the FIFA Brand

Can it be repaired?

Every 4 years the world is taken over with football fever (soccer in North America). After the years of Covid shutdowns and empty stadiums, it’s a relief to fans, players, sponsors, and advertisers that sporting events are back in full force.

I attended my fair share of football games when I lived in Denmark years ago and there is nothing quite like watching a game live – the energy of the stadium, the excitement of the game, the songs, the drinks…

This year’s FIFA cup, taking place in Qatar is faced with a myriad of controversies and they call into question the integrity of the FIFA brand.

It starts with them awarding the event to a country with a history of human rights issues – from the treatment of migrant workers, journalists, women, and the LGBTQ+ community.

Which calls into question the decision to allow Qatar to host this coveted event.

”FIFA’s VISION IS TO MAKE FOOTBALL TRULY GLOBAL, DIVERSE AND INCLUSIVE, FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE ENTIRE WORLD.”

Gianni Infantino, FIFA President

If they were truly living this vision, would they have chosen this as a host country?

After the announcement was made that Qatar won the bid back in 2010 there were accusations of bribery and corruption. Despite being cleared of any wrongdoing – the accusations never fully went away. The FIFA executive committee is an old boys club with many members and past presidents accused, banned or indicted over allegations of corruption.

According to Amnesty International, thousands of migrant workers have died and many more faced issues such as delayed or unpaid wages, denial of rest days, unsafe working conditions, barriers to changing jobs, and limited access to justice.

And recently in the news, rainbow coloured bucket hats worn by Welsh fans and staff have been confiscated. OneLove armbands promoting diversity and inclusion were banned by FIFA officials – with the statement made that yellow cards would be issued to team captains found wearing one. A German grocery story quickly pulled their sponsorship over this decision.

Less than 2 weeks before the games began, a Qatar World Cup ambassador made a statement that homosexuality was "damage in the mind” further calling into question FIFA’s values.

And then, on the eve of the opening ceremonies, Qatar issued a statement that there would be a ban on all alcohol sales during all games. This complicates their £63 million contract with the brewers of Budweiser, Anheuser-Busch InBev and disappoints the million fans flying in for the event.

Aside from how people might feel about the overconsumption of alcohol at live sporting events, it is a big contributing factor to the energy in the stadium.  It is also a significant part of the fan experience.  FIFA’s decision to allow the live event in Qatar to be hosted without alcohol shows a lack of understanding of their core customers.

While I don’t 100% disagree with the alcohol ban (we’ve all seen what alcohol fueled energy can do in sports stadiums), the last minute about face on this decision affects the integrity of the FIFA brand (one of their core values). This can have long term implications with advertisers and sponsors; potentially costing FIFA millions of dollars in future contracts.

The FIFA brand is a powerful one.  They have the ability to stipulate that their suppliers, host countries, advertisers etc…uphold their core values. The world now demands brands responsible for the working conditions of their suppliers’ employees, just think of the fashion industry or cellphone manufacturers.  Why should we accept any less of FIFA?

FIFA needs to take ownership of their brand and what they stand for.

Fans in Germany are boycotting the event and hundreds of bars across the country are refusing to show World Cup games. The overall lack of enthusiasm from fans has had a significant impact on retailers who previously were able to capitalize on World Cup Fever.

The FIFA brand is tarnished, and it will take significant work to repair it in the eyes of the world. The entire organization is in need of a revolution. This isn’t something that a band aid can fix. The leadership team, employees, sponsors, advertisers, and host countries need to live up to the values of the brand and if they can’t, they should not be a part of it. Period.

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Your brand is more than just the visual representation – it’s the experience people have and how you make people feel. If your brand is in need of a revolution (or even just an evolution), we can help. Book a call here and let’s connect.