PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Bergkvist, Lars TI - The Flipside of the Sponsorship Coin AID - 10.2501/JAR-52-1-065-073 DP - 2012 Mar 01 TA - Journal of Advertising Research PG - 65--73 VI - 52 IP - 1 4099 - http://www.journalofadvertisingresearch.com/content/52/1/65.short 4100 - http://www.journalofadvertisingresearch.com/content/52/1/65.full SO - J Advert Res2012 Mar 01; 52 AB - This study investigated whether sponsorships can have negative brand effects in some subgroups in the target market. The study focused on European football (soccer), and results showed that fans of the Stockholm team AIK transferred their dislike of the rival team Hammarby to its sponsor, the beer brand Falcon. Mean scores on brand variables were considerably lower for AIK fans than for a control group who were fans of neither AIK nor Hammarby. Researchers and managers are recommended to consider possible negative effects of sponsorships in subgroups and to evaluate the target audience's attitude toward the sponsored object.