Newly launched in the UAE, credit cards with affiliations to football clubs are showing encouraging results. Banks say these cards cut across demographics such as nationality, age group and social status, have no competition, and allow them to reach fresh customers.
Sport sells
“In five months since launch [of the Emirates NBD-Manchester United Credit Card], we already have 15,000 customers,” R. Sivaram, Head of Retail Assets & Cards Business, Emirates NBD, tells GN Focus. “The response has been fantastic. For a product that is only for fans, this is great. Last year it was our most successful in the market,” he says.
The last quarter of 2013 saw the launch of numerous cards in this space. United Arab Bank (UAB) has tied up with FC Barcelona. Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) Football Credit Card endorses Etisalat Pro-League Club, which supports local teams such as Al Jazira, Al Wasl and Al Dhafra. First Gulf Bank (FGB) has partnered with Manchester City, owned by Abu Dhabi’s Shaikh Mansour Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs, to become the club’s Official Affinity Credit Card Bank Partner. Al Hilal Bank has had a presence in this space since 2011, when it signed a participation agreement with the UAE Football Association (UAEFA) to launch a co-branded credit card.
“The future of co-branded relationship with such sporting brands will gather momentum considering the high affinity towards the game in this part of the world,” says Tony Graham, EVP — Retail Banking, UAB. “The UAE as a country has a huge affinity towards football as a sport and especially Spanish football — there are almost 450,000 FC Barcelona members registered in the UAE,” he says.
Massive markets
Football-branded credit cards are not a new concept. A cursory look at Manchester United’s home page reveals that they have myriad affiliations with banks in countries as varied as Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, China, Malta, Denmark, Kenya, Qatar and Norway, apart from those in its home country. The UK-based credit-card issuer MBNA has affiliations with several clubs. In Germany, HypoVereinsbank and FC Bayern Munich offer a credit card where high-spending customers get a €10 (Dh50) credit for every tenth home goal scored by the team.
“Affinity marketing is a very popular form of marketing. It relies on emotional connect. People have affinity to causes, to charity, to wildlife and to sports. This is a big thing, cutting across nationalities and geographies. As the market gets segmented, you have to differentiate. Football is so popular that the viewership of Fifa is more than that of some key events at the Olympics. We saw an opportunity to attract a different profile of people who are not already banking with us. And it has attracted people from across segments — both mass banking and priority banking,” says Sivaram, who is himself a newly minted Man United fan, inducted into it by his son.
Grass-roots benefits
In the UAE, affinity marketing related to football also takes the form of supporting local teams. Last year, Al Hilal Bank sponsored the 37th edition of the UAEFA’s President’s Cup, marking a fifth straight year of full support for the sporting event.
“As the national sport, football also fosters unity and national pride among citizens,” said Mohammed Jamil Berro, CEO, Al Hilal Bank, in a statement released at the time. “We are excited to once again play an active role in this year’s season and join the country in rooting for the UAE’s top players,” he said.
ADIB’s credit card is part of a larger sponsorship agreement with the UAE Football League (UFL). “ADIB’s UFL sponsorship demonstrates our intent to reach our customers throughout the UAE and deliver a unique value proposition that is relevant to them as passionate and loyal football fans,” Petr Klimes, SVP and Group Marketing Director at ADIB said in a statement. “Supporting football is our long term strategy as we believe in the future of the UAE’s youth and their development through football.”
For financial institutions, one of the best aspects of affinity products is that competition is non-existent. “The other card in the market is affiliated with Barcelona. It is targeting those fans. One does not compete with the other. If you are fan of a club, you are a fan of the club. The supporters support their club. That affinity is a lifelong affinity. They continue to be with the club,” says Sivaram.
Powerful privileges
Affinity products in the UAE are packed with rewards and benefits to draw in fans. ADIB’s card, for instance, is not only a feature-packed international covered card (a Sharia-compliant alternative to credit card) but it will also provide its users a range of football-related benefits and privileges.
Of course, the spend on the card reflects the football season. “Spends are seasonal depending on the need of a customer or happening of event. During summer, Eid and the year-end, spends typically go up,” says Graham.
Benefits for fans are necessarily emotional and most cards offer trips to the club and even entire match experiences. Rewards may include a gold-plated football and merchandise. Fans get benefits that they cannot get for money — travelling to Manchester and watch a team train or go to Barcelona or even Brazil.
“When you launch a product that appeals to a fan, it must be relevant. You will have merchandise, and members will have an opportunity to interact with players. They can realise their dream of watching
their team live. It is not easy to get tickets, so it becomes a once-in-a-lifetime experience,” says Sivaram.
UAB has opted to provide not only Barca Rewards to its Barca cards customers but also allows them to redeem points under its general rewards programme. And the association is not limited to credit cards alone.
“UAB’s relationship with FC Barcelona is the only bank-wide football affinity programme in this region…which is not limited to cards but all banking products such as salary transfer and deposits. In this phase, UAB have launched FC Barcelona credit cards, fixed deposits and salary transfer accounts,” says Graham.
Winning formula
Emirates NBD has some interesting products up its sleeve as well. With prepaid cards, it has managed to tap into the younger football fan base, which may not yet be eligible for a credit card. “You have the opportunity to gift that card to people who cannot obtain credit cards. It is a financial product with benefits. It builds affinity with fans who are young. And it gets them educated in managing their finances,” says Sivaram, whose bank is set to launch a debit card product by the end of the first quarter this year.
Underscoring the successful formula, he says, “This card has attained a critical mass very quickly. The debit card will be linked to a bank account and we will follow with a full suite of financial products.”
