When passion fuels purpose
Leveraging football fans' unique devotion for positive impact
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If there is one thing we can all agree on it’s that football fans are crazy extremely passionate. There is just something about this sport that creates a powerful connection between fans and their teams like no other does. It promotes a sense of belonging to a community, it’s somehow tied to identity, and it can trigger a range of intense emotions. Being a football fanatic makes winning unbelievably great, but losing can feel like being stabbed in the heart with multiple twists. If you know, you know. And if you don't, you've surely heard about it.
It is this passion that can end up bringing conflict, violence, abuse, and even worse things to the game. And also giving football fans a bad rep - check the image below for proof.
But this also means that there is a lot of potential here for positive impact too. Just like with everything powerful, the pendulum can swing both ways. There are countless stories of how football can bring people and institutions together for good causes, but they often happen spontaneously. Could it be that the sector overlooks this power and the possibilities it brings?
What if we looked at the fans and their unconditional love as an outstanding opportunity to promote positive change and better business in football? Fostering positive values and emotions would only enhance fan and athlete experience, make the game more attractive to brands, and generate change.
We are seeing more clubs starting to embrace this potential - women's football is ahead in this game, by the way -, but it is still mostly uncharted waters.
My favourite examples are around ten years old, but they had such an impact on me that actually were what first made me want to work with football as a tool for transformation. The way these campaigns tapped into fan passion and pride to engage the audience in different (and some complex) social actions with amazing creativity is first-class.
“Immortal fans”
In 2012, the Brazilian team Sport Club do Recife launched a campaign to encourage fans to become organ donors. The main message? “Do you want to be a fan forever? Now you can.” What fan would not love the idea of their devoted heart continuing to beat for their team even outside their chest? The award-winning campaign also featured stories of real people on waiting lists for organ donations with strong statements like “I promise your eyes will keep watching your team play.” The results were incredible: 51k fans signed up to be donors and organ donations increased 54% in a year.
“Adopt a little fan”
Sport Club do Recife did it again in 2015 through a campaign promoting foster care and adoption, especially for older children. By featuring kids talking about their love for the club and desire to find a home, it touched the fans’ hearts in a way that no other brand could. It is needless to say how brilliant it was to use a common passion (which also shapes identity and bonds) as a way to connect children with their potential foster/adoptive parents. One year later, 16 children had found a family because of this campaign. Mind-blowing. Especially when we think of all the complexities around adoption and foster care, particularly of older children. In 2020, they brought the campaign back to continue promoting this cause.
This is my personal favourite because it shows that there are really no boundaries to what can be achieved and unlocked through the powerful force that seems to run in the veins of all of us who love this sport. Isn't it amazing?
“My blood is red and black”
In 2012, Esporte Clube Vitória, also from Brazil, removed the red stripes from the players’ jerseys to prompt fans to donate blood. The only way to get their now black-and-white kit back to its original colours was by getting donations to the Blood Blank. As the fans showed up and donated, the white stripes were coloured red, and after a few matches, they were dressed in their own colours again. Blood donations went up 46% as an effect of the campaign.
I'm not gonna lie, these cases make me feel nostalgic and hungry for more of these creative, exciting, and effective purpose-led campaigns in football. It makes me wonder why we haven't seen more of these in the past and current years.
Most recently, initiatives such as AS Roma's missing children campaign, Lewes FC's ownership model, and Real Betis Balompié's Forever Green project also show ways to engage with the fans to generate change. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we also witnessed the football world rallying together to help each other and those in need through a difficult time. There are several other examples out there, but it feels like there is much more that could be done.
Lots of things have and are still changing in football, but fans’ passion and dedication for their team still remain, even if stubbornly despite the letdowns.
The world - and football itself - needs more than ever for this power to be leveraged to create positive impact and a better future.
THE GOOD LINKS
✊🏿 The anti-racism campaign launched by Vinicius Jr in Brazil.
🎨 This new piece by one of my favourite football artists. It's hard to beat the coolness of the Roma kits.
🗞️ This newsletter with opportunities for those working in the football x social impact sector.
👏🏼 This AI-generated football expert and hypothetical Fifa president candidate.
And one more thing - and two more links:
🙋🏻♀️ I got to go to the awesome MOVE Congress 2023 last week and write a few things about it. Here is what I learned about how grassroots sports can affect or contribute to planetary health. And here is what my good friend Lucy Mills, READY founder, taught us about the exciting AI-powered future of sports.
What a great examples! Thank you for sharing Heloisa!