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The purpose of this paper is to discuss the notion of “symbolic purchase” which has long been documented in the management and marketing literature. In particular, self‐congruity theory has been examined in various domains of consumer behavior. However, little attention has been paid to the area of sport. In sport business, licensed‐merchandise (i.e. team apparel) has become an increasingly important revenue source and it strengthens fan identity and brand loyalty. Therefore, based on the self‐congruity theory, the aim is to investigate the effect of self‐image congruence on sport team‐licensed merchandise evaluation and purchase.

A proposed model incorporates self‐image congruence (SIC), perceived quality, and purchase intention of team‐licensed merchandise. The reliabilities of the scaled measures were established in a pilot study (n=66). Data (n=260) for this study were collected at two professional basketball games using a convenient sampling method.

The results of the structural model indicated that the model fits the data well and constructs of self‐image congruence and perceived quality combined explained 43 per cent of the total variance in purchase intention. The findings revealed that both SIC and perceived quality had a direct positive effect on purchase intention while perceived quality also acted as a mediator between SIC and purchase intention.

The findings imply that SIC can be useful in predicting sport fans’ quality perception and purchase decisions on the team‐licensed merchandise. Future studies need to replicate this study in different regions and using different sports (i.e. soccer, baseball, etc.).

The findings extend the literature by incorporating self‐image congruence and perceived product quality in the purchase decision‐making process. This is the first known effort to apply self‐congruity theory in the spectator sport consumption context.

The purpose of this paper is to gain insight into how consumers value sports team-branded merchandise. Two experiments are conducted to examine the effects of rivalry and team identification on evaluations of licensed product (Study 1). Study 2 examined the effects of team brand cue, team performance priming and product category on licensed product evaluations.

Study 1 (N = 104) examined the effects of team rivalry and team identification on multidimensional product values and purchase intent. In Study 2, a 3 (performance priming: positive/negative/neutral) × 2 (team brand cue: present/absent) × 2 (product category: symbolic/utilitarian) between-subjects design (N = 285) was utilized. Samples were recruited from students and alumni at a large Midwestern university in the USA. A series of multivariate analysis of covariance was conducted to test the proposed hypotheses.

Fans view a product licensed with a rival team’s logo to have significantly less functional, emotional and social value than a product licensed with their favorite team’s logo. Highly identified fans showed greater bias in evaluating the product than less identified fans. Team performance priming also moderated the effect of team brand cues on purchase intentions toward the licensed product.

Team identification level accentuates bias in valuations of a licensed product. In addition, better performance of a team further motivates purchase decisions. Use of a collegiate brand in this study limits generalizability of the findings.

Practitioners should realize that simple heuristic cues can change consumers’ perceptions of licensed merchandise product values.

The current study extends previous research on licensed product valuation by using multidimensional value propositions and a variety of product-related cues.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between consumers’ purchase motivations to show support for university programs and the influence of merchandise quality cues on their purchase decision, and examine how one's affiliation with a university (official or non-official) moderates this relationship.

This research utilized a mail survey of university bookstore customers from the USA and Canada. The university, located in the USA, has an international reputation for its academic programs, its athletic teams, and its religious affiliation.

Our findings demonstrate the significance of athletic programs over academic programs and religious values in motivating purchases of licensed university merchandise.

These findings have significant implications for several stakeholders in the business of retailing licensed merchandise. In particular, university licensors and their bookstore retailers may consider managing their inventory of licensed products to reflect the greater relative importance athletic teams have in the purchase decision process.

This paper adds to our understanding of customer motivations to purchase university licensed merchandise, and the conditions when merchandise quality is a key decision driver.

Building on existing sport licensing research from the North American market, the primary goal of this study was to explore meanings embedded in sport licensed products in the Greek sport market. The secondary goal was to examine the extent to which product meanings can predict favorable sport consumer behaviors.

Data were collected from football and basketball fans of the two biggest professional sport clubs in Greece. A total of 255 Greek fans completed the surveys. Data were analyzed using exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling.

The findings uncovered a 14-item solution to capture the meanings attached to sport licensed products in the Greek market, including four factors-sources: experience, socialization, aesthetics and locality. Meanings related to aesthetics and experience significantly and positively predicted customer satisfaction, word-of-mouth communication, purchase intention and willingness to pay a price premium for licensed products of one's favorite team.

From a practical standpoint, this study shows that sport licensed products need to be positioned in the market based on their aesthetic quality. Also, communication plans that associate these products with opportunities for unique experiences, relationships with other fans and a connection to one's local community can drive sales, especially in less developed sport markets such as Greece.

This research contributes to existing literature by highlighting the prominent role of the aesthetic appeal of team licensed products as well as the experience of sport consumers as sources of meaning and value for the owners of those products.

The purpose of this paper is to predict intentions to purchase sport team licensed merchandise (STLM) using the theory of planned behavior (TPB).

Three constructs of the TPB such as attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control (PBC) were used to predict purchase intention of STLM. In an effort to increase the level of prediction, additional elements – past behavior and role identity – were included. A total of 384 university students participated in the survey.

The results indicated that attitude, subjective norms, and PBC accounted for 64 percent of the variance in purchase intention of STLM. Past behavior and role identity explained an additional 9.3 percent of the variance in purchase intentions. Past behavior was the strongest predictor of purchase intention.

The results showed the efficacy of the TPB in predicting purchase intentions of STLM.

This study investigates the mediating effect of perceived value in the relationship between team identification and purchase intention towards licensed apparel within two different price settings (market price and 40% above market price). Considering adaptation level theory, cognitive dissonance theory and dual information processing, it is hypothesised that team identification will directly influence purchase intention when the price of a product decreases. Two models (partial mediation and full mediation) were constructed in each price setting and tested using structural equation modelling (SEM). The results indicate that the partial mediation model better fits the data for the 70,000 Won setting and the full mediation model was a better fit for the 90,000 Won setting.

Branded merchandise and licensed apparel comprise a substantial portion of revenue for many organizations and public figures that choose to employ such an endeavor. Endorsement deals with apparel manufacturers have historically been utilized for athletes looking to supplement their salaries and establish greater brand awareness. However, as some athletes establish ownership of their logo and become less reliant on companies such as Nike and Adidas for merchandise distribution, assessing the influence of various entity's logos on the athlete brand has become worthy of analysis. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the influence that cobranded merchandise has on consumers when the athlete logo is displayed next to another team or manufacturer logo.

Using an online panel and survey, a final sample of 127 participants completed a questionnaire to examine their attitudes towards various athlete brand elements. ANCOVA's and MANCOVA's were utilized to assess significant findings, holding the variable of identification constant.

The results revealed that only the perceptions of merchandise quality significantly varied between an athlete brand and an apparel manufacturer (i.e. Nike) co-brand. The findings indicate that athletes should look to co-brand with high brand awareness manufacturers, and that there is no significant difference between consumers' perceptions of athlete brands when co-branding with team brands.

This is one of the first studies to evaluate the relationship between the athlete brand and external entities from a consumer perspective.

This investigation evaluated four sports fan characteristics (fan identification, trust in internet shopping, attitude towards online purchasing, and perceptions of convenience) and two sports website characteristics (perception of product comparison service, and website price advantage) to assess their ability to differentiate licensed sports merchandise purchasers (buyers), and those who just browsed sports websites (browsers). The results made it possible to differentiate buyers and browsers based on 'trust in internet shopping', 'attitude towards online purchasing', 'perceptions of convenience', and 'website price advantage'. Additionally, all six characteristics collectively explained sports merchandise consumers buying versus browsing.

While brand extensions and licensing are two distinct brand strategies, recent literature suggests that licensing be treated as an “external” brand extension. As both of these strategies have the ability to have positive and negative effects on the team's brand it is important to understand if consumers are aware if they are purchasing licensed products or extensions. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to examine if consumers are aware when a brand extension or licensing situation is present.

This research involved exposing participants to a total of 16 products (eight brand extensions and eight licensed products) and asking participants to indicate who developed the products they were exposed to.

The results suggest that participants had a difficult time correctly identifying team licensed products, while in general they were able to successfully identify team brand extensions.

This study provides empirical evidence suggesting that licensed product should not be classified as brand extensions as has been previously suggested. As such, research on brand extensions may not be applicable to licensing and vice versa.

As there is some confusion in regards to who is manufacturing team licensed product, it is important that sport properties choose licensees that produce high quality products to limit potential negative effects on their brand.

This was the first known study to examine differences in consumer awareness of team brand extensions and licensed products.

The purpose of this research was to investigate the effects of patriotism and identification with national players on identification with the NBA and, ultimately, with purchase intentions of league-related merchandise. Findings revealed that the interaction between patriotism and identification with national players was a significant predictor of identification with NBA, which in turn was a significant predictor of purchase intentions of league-related products. The moderated mediation model fit the data quite well and explained 44.5% of the variance in purchase intentions. Theoretical implications of the findings, as well as practical implications for sports managers, are discussed.