Football, the so-called beautiful game, is attractive to possibly the widest demographic of sports fans because of the socio-political boundary-breaking silky skills the idolised pros display on the pitch, uniting countries and rival cities.
But it’s not just at the recreational level that football’s beauty begins and ends today. The corporate world has long attempted to tap the feverish passion invested in the sport to profit from its appeal. And the latest corporate sector hoping to ride the coattails of the world’s most famous clubs and piggyback on the enduring support from fans is the credit- card segment.
Fan frenzy
Thanks to the rapidly exalted status of football in the UAE, Emirates NBD, First Gulf Bank and United Arab Bank have all signed what they hope will be lucrative tie-ups with Manchester United, Manchester City and Barcelona respectively. Each bank has unveiled co-branded credit cards replete with incentives that diehard fans just have to have.
But owning such a premier league product can come at a price. So do consumers receive another pass from the suits aiming to profit from a slice of their adoration of their football clubs, or do they let the ball go and leave it to someone else to pick up and run with?
“We weren’t too worried about the interest rates or anything like that as long as I had the Man United card — that was all that mattered,” Dave Pickford, a 38-year-old British expatriate living in Dubai, who recently acquired a Manchester United-branded Emirates NBD credit card with his wife, Patricia, told GN Focus.
Asked if he was prepared to take a hit over financial details to have the piece of United plastic in his wallet, he gives an emphatic “Yes, yes, yes. It’s all about the prestige of having this card. I love the club, so we had to get one.”
According to the Deira-headquartered bank, a record number of Man United fans have applied for the credit card since its launch in September last year.
Perfect perks
Pickford was one of 48 Man United Emirates NBD cardholders who recently won a fully paid trip to see their beloved team play Manchester City at Old Trafford for the Premier League showdown in April. This is one of the various incentives unique to the credit card that catches the eyes of prospective customers.
When we met, Pickford was beaming with excitement — barely able to withhold effusive expressions of his love of the Manchester club and not shy of a glowing report of the Dubai bank’s decision to enter into an agreement with the Red Devils.
Another winner of a Emirates NBD-Man United give-away was 30-year-old Dubai-born Javed Akberali. But instead of a trip to Old Trafford, which was the incentive that originally prompted lifelong United fan Akberali to get the card, he was awarded a 2014 model Chevrolet Camaro. Chevrolet is the official Car Partner of the club.
Discussing the United-Emirates NBD card, an enthusiastic Akberali says: “I don’t think too many banks have worked on targeting niche segments that touch the heart of a sports fan. I think everyone is looking at freebies, at benefits, at giving things away. But this card brings you an intangible benefit that you just can’t match if you’re a United fan.”
Akberali is so taken with the MUFC credit card, he recommends it to non-United fans: “I’ve not only referred, but I’ve registered 16 other friends of mine for the card — because I’m an opinion leader within my group.”
Manchester United’s blue moon rivals from the same city, Manchester City, have also launched a credit card for the growing UAE, specifically Abu Dhabi, fan base given the club’s Etihad sponsorship.
But the sky blue half of Manchester seems more sceptical about the First Gulf Bank joint venture with their club. One Man City fan posted in a dedicated forum for the Etihad-sponsored Premiership club: “I know it’s the reality of modern football, but it just sounds so bloody wrong.
“Of course everyone can thank the rags for pioneering corporate football, and Platini for making sponsorship deals essential to any team that wants to bring in revenues to avoid falling foul of FFP.
“But it still doesn’t sit well with me,” wrote the irate fan.
Exceptional equity
Liverpool also has a large support network in the Middle East. But the Merseyside club doesn’t yet have a credit card tie-up with their sponsoring bank — Standard Chartered — available in the UAE.
Graham Smith, a Dubai-based expat Liverpool fan said that he would be willing to consider switching banks if a Liverpool FC-branded credit card was to become available.
“I think anything that can bring me closer to my club is worth considering. And if the money you spend on your credit card goes towards financially supporting your pride and joy — however big or small a percentage — is a great incentive for me, as a fan, to consider getting involved in.”
Scott Feasey, Managing Director of Iris Worldwide Mena, discusses the implications of whether football fans could be sold a dummy by banks with the flashy incentive of having their favourite team emblazoned on the front, but fall short on the financial minutiae that usually attracts customers to credit-card deals.
“Consumers are used to paying a premium for something they really want. That’s normal. Take Beats Headphones for example. I don’t think they are of a better quality than a normal pair, but consumers pay a premium for the culture and story around the brand — its brand equity.
“Culture in a sense trumps marketing. Let’s also not forget the additional costs the bank has with a co-brand, compared to their own simple credit cards. There are more costs on co-brands, so it stands to reason to have higher charges on them,” he says.
