Influence of Brand Image of a Sports Event on the Recommendation of Its Participants

Abstract

The aim of this research is to test the psychometric properties and relationships of a model where, from brand congruence of a sport event, trust and commitment to it can be generated, influencing future behavior of participants and resulting in a higher recommendation also called Word of Mouth (hereinafter WOM). A quantitative approach has been carried out by means of a validated questionnaire with Likert-type responses, and data were analyzed with the EQS 6.4 software. The findings indicated that the model is adequate, and also confirm that from congruence, we can explain, at a theoretical level, 45% of trust, and in the same way, from the congruence and trust, we can explain 67% of the commitment with the brand. Finally, it is confirmed that trust and brand commitment significantly influence WOM, predicting it up to 51%. These conclusions provide implications to managers, to guide their marketing strategies more effectively and to know what is important to achieve the desired behaviors, which will favor the sustainability of the event and the generation of positive impacts in the host location. This research also provides original information in a context such as sporting events where the study of brand image is practically non-existent.