Exploring young people’s views of alcohol sports sponsorship: findings from a qualitative research study

Research indicates that alcohol sponsorship influences young people to start drinking earlier and increases their likelihood of consuming more alcohol (Brown, 2016). Unlike traditional advertising, sponsorship seamlessly integrates alcohol branding into widely viewed sporting events, making it more appealing and harder to distinguish as marketing. This exposure is particularly concerning for adolescents, who often struggle to differentiate between advertising and genuine association, leading them to link alcohol with sporting success and social acceptance (Kelly et al., 2014).

As regulations on alcohol advertising and sponsorship tighten in certain countries such as Ireland, alcohol companies have adopted alternative marketing strategies to maintain brand visibility (Critchlow, Moodie & Houghton, 2023). One such approach is alibi marketing, where other brand signifiers—such as slogans, fonts, or brand colours—are used instead of the brand name to continue sponsorship without explicitly advertising alcohol (Purves et al., 2017). Another method is surrogate marketing, where alcohol brands use non-alcoholic or low-alcohol (NoLo) product variations, such as X Brand 0.0%, to continue sponsorship of sporting events in countries where alcohol advertising is restricted (Critchlow & Purves, 2023).

Research Findings

Our SPECTRUM-funded research aimed to explore the extent and nature of children and young people's exposure to alcohol sponsorship, including where and how often they see it and their perceptions of it. We also investigated their views on alibi and surrogate marketing, particularly whether they differentiate between the marketing of NoLo variations and their regular-strength counterparts.

To achieve this, we conducted ten online focus groups with children and young people aged 11-17 living in Scotland. Participants were recruited via a market research agency and grouped based on age (11-13, 14-15, 16-17) and sex. Each focus group was facilitated by at least two researchers using a combination of slides featuring various images and a semi-structured topic guide covering key themes.

Participants exhibited a strong awareness of alcohol brands, with children as young as 11 recognising various brands by name and identifying their products. They were also familiar with different marketing practices used to promote these products and reported frequent exposure to alcohol advertisements on TV, posters, billboards, and social media.

Participants identified sports—particularly football—as the primary source of alcohol sponsorship exposure. Participants had a good understanding of what sponsorship involves, and all groups were able to offer a definition. Many expressed concerns that alcohol sponsorship in sports was inappropriate for young audiences, as it could encourage underage drinking and create positive associations between alcohol and athleticism. They found it difficult to reconcile sporting events and athletes with unhealthy products such as alcohol, stating that the link did “not make sense” as sportspeople would not drink alcohol before competing. Interestingly, participants distinguished sports sponsorship from sponsorship at music festivals, which they believed was a more acceptable form of sponsorship because music festival attendees are mostly adults.

When shown examples of alibi sponsorship (e.g., slogans and colours associated with alcohol brands but without the brand name), most participants quickly identified the corresponding alcohol brands.  They expressed concerns that this type of marketing was being used to exploit loopholes in advertising regulations and could encourage young people to search for more information online. Similarly, when shown images of NoLo product sponsorship, most participants did not initially recognise them as non-alcoholic drinks. Instead, they focused on how the branding closely resembled regular-strength alcohol products. Many believed that NoLo branding should be made more distinct to prevent confusion and potential indirect promotion of alcohol consumption.

Recommendations

Participants strongly supported stricter regulations to prevent children and young people being exposed to alcohol sponsorship. They suggested that NoLo products should have distinct branding to differentiate them from their alcoholic counterparts. They also suggested that alcohol sponsorship in sports should be limited to prevent young audiences from being exposed to alcohol branding and that regulations should close loopholes that allow alcohol brands to maintain visibility through indirect advertising.

By implementing these measures, policymakers can help mitigate the influence of alcohol marketing on young people and ensure that public health policies remain effective in reducing underage drinking.

The authors: Richard I. Purves, Jack G. Martin and Piotr Teodorowski, Institute for Social Marketing and Health, University of Stirling.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Olivia Brown, University of Nottingham, for her contribution to the research project. This research was funded by a grant from the SPECTRUM consortium Research Innovation Fund and Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems (SHAAP).