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The aim of this research is to measure the impact of eWOM (electronic word of mouth) and brand celebrity use on the purchasing behavior of sports consumers.

To test the model hypotheses, sports consumers who use social media and have purchased at least one online sports product were selected as the research group. Online survey method was used, and 836 participants were reached. The model was tested with structural equation modeling (SEM) through smart PLS software.

As a result, the quality, credibility and usefulness of the information consumers encounter on online platforms cause them to adopt information about products or services, and then exhibit online purchase behavior. While the attractiveness and trustworthiness of celebrities are seen as important factors affecting consumers' online purchase of sports products, the effect of celebrity expertise was found to be ineffective in this study.

Marketers can develop more effective eWOM strategies by considering consumers' expectations. Businesses that want to implement an effective marketing strategy may prefer celebrities in product promotions or advertisements of their brands.

This research revealed the effect of eWOM and celebrity endorsement on the online purchase behavior of sports consumers in terms of the sports industry. Unlike previous studies, this study examined these variables together on sports consumers and contributed to the development of models.

In sports consumer behaviour literature only a small amount of variance in attendance is explained by motives. One possible explanation for this is the existence of a third factor which moderates this relationship between the motives and attendance. Individuals who strongly identify with a sports team demonstrate distinctly different behavioural patterns from weakly identified individuals. Identification may, therefore, serve as a moderator. Accordingly, two hypotheses are generated: (a) the relationship between motives and attendance intention ranges from weak to moderate; and (b) the overarching construct of Identification (Team Identification) moderates the influence of motives on attendance intention. Participants were 207 United States of America National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division IA student-subjects. Instrumentation includes measures of motivation, points of attachment and attendance intention. Through hierarchical Confirmatory Factor Analysis, regression analyses and latent variable scores approach, the results largely support both hypotheses.

The purpose of this study is to develop a Sport Website Acceptance Model (SWAM) based on the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM; Davis, 1989). To better explain sports fans' decision-making processes in using sports websites, we incorporated salient consumer variables as sports involvement and psychological commitment and added trustworthiness and enjoyment to the TAM. The paper concludes with implications for future research and for application to online sports business.

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.

This conceptual article presents a theoretical approach to understanding the atmosphere at sports stadiums. Using the environmental psychology behavioural model proposed by Mehrabian & Russell (1974), and taking into account recent findings in consumer research, we develop a comprehensive framework for investigating this atmosphere. The framework highlights the role of emotions elicited by different stimuli in sports stadiums. We also suggest a number of direct and indirect influences on behavioural outcomes, caused by the emotional reactions and personal predispositions of spectators - influences that are of economic relevance. The proposed framework also forms a starting point for future empirical studies.

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.

The purpose is to review literature on sports season ticket subscriptions to distil current knowledge and guide future research and practice.

A systematic literature review is conducted of research on sports season tickets, a long-established and innovative subscription category.

In-depth examination of 28 papers showed a focus on drivers of satisfaction, churn and renewal causes, and product utilisation rates. Subscription markets typically involve many “solely loyal” consumers, most purchasing one or two subscriptions in a category. From reduced barriers to entry and exit to “curated” subscriptions, subscription marketing is changing very quickly. Sports marketers build relationships with subscribers using behavioural data, tier benefits to distinguish between casual and subscribing customers, and create recall and scarcity around key aspects of subscription to combat churn and increase utilisation.

Scarce research on subscription marketing practices remains the primary limitation. Existing research suggests that strong connections between subscriber and organisation, heavy product utilisation and/or strong barriers to switching drive customer satisfaction and retention.

Rapid expansion of subscription products should reduce “excess loyalty”, meaning that subscription models' main benefit will be limited to reoccurring revenue. Exceptions occur when consumers are heavily connected to the product or have little provider choice, so allocate their category buying exclusively. New subscription products face myriad challenges. Guidance on effective subscription marketing from sports marketing research and practice is outlined.

By combining research on market structure, marketing empirical generalisations and subscription marketing, this paper guides future research and practice.

The purpose of this paper is to understand how team identification and country influence professional baseball team spectators’ evaluations of service quality factors, perceived value and future behavioral intentions.

Data were collected online from sports consumers of the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) in Taiwan (n = 600) and Major League Baseball in the USA (n = 460). A regression-based estimation method (PROCESS) and structural equation modeling approach were used to assess the relationships.

Both direct and indirect (via perceived value) effects of most service quality factors (schedule convenience, economic consideration, game amenities, ticket service and venue quality) on behavioral intentions are stronger for lowly than for highly identified CPBL fans. The indirect effect of home team on behavioral intentions is stronger for the lowly identified CPBL fans. The direct effect of game amenities and the indirect effect of venue quality (via perceived value) on behavioral intentions are stronger for the highly identified MLB fans. The indirect effect of opposing team and economic consideration is stronger for the lowly identified MLB fans. The positive relationship between venue quality and perceived value is stronger for the USA than for Taiwan fans. The relationships between game amenities and perceived value and between perceived value and behavioral intention are perceived to be invariant between fans from the two countries. Taiwan fans’ behavioral intentions tend to be directly and indirectly affected by service quality factors, whereas US fans’ behavioral intentions tend to be indirectly affected by service quality factors.

The study provides empirical evidence of the moderating role of team identification associated with the relationships between separate service quality factors, perceived value and behavioral intentions among consumers of a professional spectator sports in two different countries.

The study aimed to establish football fans' levels of social identity, team loyalty, and behavioral intentions toward sports consumption and to determine the relationship between these variables using a structural equation model.

Research methods: The research model was tested by data analysis using AMOS 23.0. The study sample included 518 football fans with mean age 30.87 (±10.15) years. Data were collected using an online questionnaire delivered to football fans via social media.

The results supported the study hypotheses and showed that social identity and team loyalty had a significant effect on behavioral intention toward sport consumption for football teams. Social identity was found to have a direct effect on sport consumption behaviors. It was further established that team loyalty was a mediator in the relationship between the fans' social identity and behavioral intention toward sports consumption.

The study planned to collect the data at the stadium entrance before the game; however, it was not possible to reach the fans face-to-face due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and therefore, the data were collected online.

By understanding how the extent of social identity affects sports consumption intention, sports club managers can achieve a higher level of fan loyalty to their teams.

The present study provides additional insight into the available literature on team identification. It demonstrated that team identification was associated with social identity and that social identity had an impact on sports consumption behaviors.

This study is an original study in that it is a study in which the social identity scale is used together with the variables of team loyalty and sports consumption behavior intention. The findings of this study help understand the processes that shape the behavioral intentions of football fans toward sports consumption. Furthermore, the mediating role of the developed model was tested using team loyalty.

The purpose of this research was to develop the Sports Consumer-Team Relationship Quality Scale (SCTRQS). In Study I, content validity was established through a comprehensive review of literature and tests of content validity, including expert review. Based on the assessment of psychometric properties, theoretical relevance of the items and parsimoniousness of the scale, items were refined for two following studies. Results indicated that the SCTRQS would be a valid tool for marketers and managers to assess relationship quality with their consumers for marketing strategies, effectiveness of advertising campaigns, sponsorship value and value for stakeholders.