Culture and Franchise

Culture and franchise 2

What cultural factors must U.S. sports franchises overcome to increase popularity abroad? Why?

Cultural factors in sports always come down to accommodations. In order to have a successful sports franchise or any successful franchise for that matter you have to accommodate and adjust to cultural beliefs and public advertisement. One really good example of this is the 2012 Olympic Games in London. The issue came about by a group called Islamic Human Rights. The chairman Massoud Shadjared stated, “This is going to disadvantage the athletes and alienate the communities by saying they don’t matter. It’s not only going to affect the participants, it’s going to affect all the people who want to watch the Games” (cjsmblog.com). The problem was that Ramadan in 2012 is from July 21st to August 20th. The Olympic Games ran from July 27th to August 12th. This meant that Muslims and others that partake in Ramadan would have to not participate in the Olympic Games or not participate Ramadan. Ramadan in the most religious holiday of the year and requires fasting for the whole month. It would be extremely difficult to participate in the Games if you couldn’t eat. Measures have since been taken to adjust the schedule of the games. Other reasons such as advertising or the name of a name can also effect the success of the team. One good example of this is the football team the Redskins, where recently have come under fire with Native Americans saying the name is offense. So as mentioned early cultural success of a franchise whatever it may be is about accommodations.

Culture and Franchise 3

How can franchises ensure their products are appropriate for international markets?

The only way a franchise can ensure that their products are appropriate are by ensuring they have a good understanding of the culture. Products cannot insult or have a negative impact on the cultures beliefs. For example, Wal-Mart used to advertise during...