Purpose
This policy supports the national programme for integration of refugees into the community. It is aligned with the Football Association’s Equality policy. The Association is committed to supporting social inclusion through football by bringing people together to overcome discrimination. The national sports sanctions entities have asked all member organisations to develop policies for integrating refugees into their sport. As the governing body for English football the Association recognises the value of sport and the role of football in supporting the development of an inclusive environment for participation to the greater benefit of society. The United Kingdom has committed to taking 20,000 refugees in 2016, with England taking the most. Coming to a new country is not easy when you do not know anyone or speak the language. Refugees may further be affected by trauma. The Association’s integration strategies aim to help in the best way we can and support the ambitions of government and national sporting bodies. This policy and its supporting strategy and guidance will set out a vision for integrating refugees across all levels of our organisation from recreational to the highest professional level. Scope This policy applies to Football Association and all local associations, organisations and clubs affiliated to it. Policy Statement The Football Association is committed to promoting the integration of refugees into UK society through inclusion in its football development programmes and in accordance with the Equality Policy. The Association will engage with member associations, clubs and other stakeholders to develop strategies and allocate responsibilities and resources to achieve this. The Association will monitor performance of the programme and review the effectiveness of the strategy. The policy is fully supported, and will be implemented by the Association’s Main Board. Objectives: · To provide opportunities for refugees of all ages through football which will enhance their quality of life and enable them to achieve to their highest potential. · To promote integration through developing the language skills of refugees and cross-cultural appreciation in a neutral environment though the shared common interest of football. · To work collaboratively with other sports bodies to ensure strategic alignment and complementary programmes. · To identify new opportunities for funding at local, national and international level to support and develop the programme of activities. · To use existing relationships and build new ones with schools, youth centres and retirement homes to benefit the full age range of refugees. · To offer a wide range of opportunities within football to all refugees for all levels of ability and interest. · To encourage and support all parties involved and promote success. Implementation · The FA’s Inclusion Advisory Board, reporting to the Main Board, will oversee the development, implementation, monitoring and review of the refugee inclusion strategy. · The Association will allocate funding for refugee inclusion as part of the overall inclusion budget which will be administered by the Inclusion Advisory Board. · Refugee inclusion will be included in the annual report and action plan on inclusion and anti-discrimination. · A National Refugee Inclusion Co-ordinator will be appointed who will report to the Director of Inclusion. This role will engage with stakeholders, regional associations, national sports bodies and funding agencies to develop, resource, promote and monitor the strategy. · Regional coordinators will be appointed to work closely with local associations and clubs and local government. The roles will identify local needs and opportunities and support applications for resources to provide suitable programmes. · The Regional Coordinators will organise and promote local events and activities and arrange events cascaded down in support of the Association’s national initiatives and programmes. · A budget will be allocated to each region per the number and distribution of refugees. This will be managed by the Regional Coordinators and monitored by the National Refugee Inclusion Coordinator. · Staff and coaches will be appointed to work under the Regional Coordinator on geographic basis per the number and distribution of refugees. Training programmes will be developed and provided to support existing coaches and staff in this aspect. · The staff and coaches will offer support and guidance to the refugees where required. Strategic Plan The Association’s policy for integration of refugees sets out a single vision to enable all refugees to integrate fully into society by 2022. It aspires to make all refugees feel welcome as well as raising health, education and community outcomes. Our strategy sets out our ambition and how we will achieve it, the actions needed to be successful, the role that the Association will play and how we will work with different parties to achieve our shared vision of integrating refugees into our multicultural society. How we will act to deliver the strategic plan: The Association envisages that the whole process for integration could take between 3-5 years and it will be built on these important principles; · Working together: The FA will work with all stakeholders on a national and local level to achieve the utmost success of the integration of refugees into the society. · Being inclusive: The FA will recognise all the cultural preferences of each refugee, considering the range of diversity. · Maximising resources: The FA will ensure that maximum impact is derived from all allocated resources and that everyone involved in the process will get the best value from them. · Reviewing progress: The FA will review progress of the strategy against the annual action plan to monitor that all targets are being met. Football In The Community The Football in the Community programme will be at the forefront of refugee integration. Football in the Community (FITC) is operated under the auspices of the EFL Trust and is therefore Football League related. It is run individually by each of the clubs within the Football League and below. This programme will be used for the initiative since the FITC scheme is well established and respected. It works effectively with local communities and helps improve the lives of many in need through coaching and socialising with others. The FITC scheme would give refugees the opportunity to be associated to the local professional football team and would enable them to play football with people from different backgrounds or to coach others if they would like to. This would then help form a pathway to integrate refugees into the game and the community. To support FITC and to make all refugees feel welcome we would introduce liaison officers and hold regular language sessions to make the transition of integration smoother. The liaison officer would be each refugee’s first port of call should an issue arise or they need someone to talk to. Whilst we envisage that FITC will have a positive impact on integrating refugees, the Association also acknowledges that some refugees arriving will be high calibre athletes. Consequently, the Association would support refugees seeking a professional career in applying for work permits and enable them to look forward to a more stable future. Inclusion through qualification This is a new initiative to be introduced by the FA which offers coaching and refereeing training courses to refugees of all genders and all ages with the primary focus being on social inclusion for refugees living in the region. The course will be free of charge and will be split into theoretical and practical lessons and like the FITC scheme include lessons in English. The ‘inclusion through qualification’ course will act as a fast track into the football world. Refugees will be assisted by language teachers and qualified referees with the assistance of a course guide that includes rich visual media. Refugee Action Board A refugee action board will also be established to help promote engagement and listen to ideas and concerns of all ages. How we will fund the strategic plan: The Association has lead responsibility for delivering and resourcing this initiative. Some initiatives set out in the policy are already underway and have funding allocated. However, funding for new initiatives introduced will come from a redirection of current funding for the game or from identifying new sources. The funding of the strategy will be phased. Each project will receive an initial allocation with further funding subject to performance targets being achieved. · The FITC scheme will be given an initial 1 million GBP in January 2017. Whilst FITC is currently active and funded the scheme will require additional resources to enable expansion into different areas to cope with the influx of refugees. · ‘Inclusion through qualification’ will be allocated 2.5 million GBP at the launch in January 2017. This larger amount reflects that this scheme is new and the cost structure is different. This will cover the appointment of language teachers, liaison officers, coaches and allow support from qualified referees. The initiative will be subject to annual review and the following performance indicators: · Increase in volunteers in the schemes mentioned. · Increase in qualified coaches and referees from ethnic backgrounds. · Increase in participation in football amongst ethnic backgrounds. This initiative will form the basis of the ‘Refugees: World at your Feet’ campaign which sets out a positive vision for integrating the new influx of refugees into society through football . The Association will officially launch this initiative at a presentation evening for all stakeholders. The following table summarises the implementation programme.
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I have selected Under Armour as the sports brand to evaluate using the identity prism due to the affinity that I have with them at many levels. Firstly, I admire how the company as risen to prominence, developing over the years in to a major brand through a gradual strategy. In 1999 the brand featured in two American Football films, courtesy of Warner Brothers, with Under Armour launching their first TV add in 2003 (Under Armour, 2016). The advertisement featured three words “protect this house” which acted as a rallying cry to athletes (Under Armour, 2015). Furthermore, it was used for home teams to defend their turf from the opposition in the same way Under Armour protects from competitors. As a result, it attracted a lot more men as well as women to the brand. This kick-started something special as the brand then began acquiring major partnerships such as the Baltimore marathon and partners in Major League Baseball. This is illustrated through the sponsorship agreements that they have had with athletes of increasing prominence over the last decade. In 2006 they were associated with Bobby Zamora (an English footballer who was not that well known outside the UK), whereas Under Armour now has agreements with the likes of Tom Brady (NFL), Stephen Curry (NBA), Michael Phelps (swimmer) and Lindsey Vonn (Alpine ski racer), all of whom are well-established athletes in the US. These types of agreements have helped Under Armour overtake Adidas in the American market (Shah, 2016). The brand in its slogans and adverts mirror my determination to succeed as a person. For example, of their many powerful slogans one is “Our job is to make you better” (R204DESIGN,2013), which acts as a call to arms and suggests to the consumer the notion of Under Armour being on the consumer’s side. It also links to a product performance characteristic, it suggests that the product provides high comfort and better performance when exercising. I also have affinity with Under Armour as I admire their aspiration to be the market leaders in innovation as suggested with “the latest innovation isn’t available yet, but it’s being built at Under Armour” taken from a TV advertisement (R204DESIGN, 2013). Kevin Plank the CEO of Under Armour states that they are not worried about the current competition, “they’re worried about the competition that doesn’t exist yet” (National Retail Federation, 2016). These various statements from Under Armour outline what a forward-thinking organisation they are and how rapidly they are expanding. This is further outlined through their mission statement in which Under Armour expresses its main aim to create “game-changing products to give athletes an advantage” (Under Armour, 2016). When they first launched onto the sports market they solely focused on sporting under garments before expanding into other fields after creating a foothold in that specific field. Below is Kapferer’s brand identity prism and SWOT analysis focussing on Under Armour and how they have become a major sporting brand. Physique is of key importance as this is what the consumer associates with the brand first and foremost. Under Armour’s main physical appearances are the symbol and the logo, otherwise known as the brand mark. According to Brassington and Pettit (2006, p.305) the brand mark is the element (without words) which offers visual brand identity and makes it instantly recognisable. The colour which Under Armour uses for its brand mark according to the colour emotion guide is one to show balance within the brand as well as remaining neutral (Ciotti, 2016). This is shown with product ranges appealing to both sexes and not just being male or female driven. Furthermore, the physique of Under Armour shows a brand which is strong and athletic and being a both indoor and outdoor brand, thus reflecting the neutrality again. The personality of Under Armour is one that is athletic, strong, serious and fit as demonstrated with the sponsorships and the brand ambassadors the company has. They have endorsement contracts with the likes of Andy Murray and Stephen Curry as well as Lindsey Vonn, thus proving that the Under Armour brand does not belong to one specific sex and targets both men and women. The personality can also reflect Under Armour’s will to be the best sports brand as the athletes they have signed up all demonstrate a will to be the best in their specific field. Strong brands are built on strong culture which is what Under Armour portrays with Kapferer (2008, p.183) stating that “every brand should have its own culture to which every product derives”. The values that it relays to the audience are clear and concise, so the consumer knows exactly what Under Armour stands for and more importantly what the Under Armour brand is. Under Armour is firstly an American brand having launched in 1996 with its headquarters in Baltimore. The brand – also projects a modern culture due to its innovative products it producers along with a strong teamwork culture as seen in the brand’s advertisements (i.e. protect this house). The brand portrays its relationship to its consumers through a number of eye catching slogans which gets the audience hooked. On the brand identity prism, there are such slogans as “I will” which immediately fills the consumer with empowerment and a drive to succeed. The phrase also portrays that the brand is for winners and wants to strike a winning mentality amongst its consumers. Reflection is the view of the sender and how it is representative of them. The brand identity prism shows that Under Armour wishes to demonstrate that with the right application anyone can succeed through the underdog tagline. This would have a wide appeal as people do generally have an affinity with the underdog and the prospect of success against the odds along with being highly competitive. Under Armour also reflects an image which is successful and fitter suggesting that if you wear our brand you too can be seen as a more fit and successful person. This reflection shows that Under Armour wishes to work with the consumer through having a broad appeal and that if the consumer puts in the hard work it will pay off, thus becoming fitter. The self-image which Under Armour wishes to show is one of innovation with high quality within their products. This gives the impression to the consumer that when they purchase an Under Armour product it will be of leading quality in design and performance. The innovation part is important as they try to distinguish themselves from other sports brands by leading in innovation - most consumers love to try something new on the market. Furthermore, the brand wants to show everything that the company produces is of high calibre meaning that the price of the products is worth it as it aims to satisfy the consumer by giving them the ultimate comfort and enjoyment from it. References
Brassington, F. and Pettit, S (2006). Principles of Marketing. London: Pearson Education Limited. p305. Ciotti, G. (2016). The Psychology of Color in Marketing and Branding. Available: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/233843. Last accessed 6th Dec 2016. Farhana, M. (2014 ). Implication of Brand Identity Facets on Marketing Communication of Lifestyle Magazine: Case Study of A Swedish Brand. Journal of Applied Economics and Business Research. 4 (1), p23-41. Gaines, C. (2016). Under Armour has a brilliantly simple strategy to do something Nike has been unable to do — conquer the golf world. Available: http://www.businessinsider.com/how-under-armour-plans-to-do-something-nike-failed-to-do-conquer-the-golf-world-2016-3?international=true&r=US&IR=T . Last accessed 7th Dec 2016. Kapferer, J.N (2008). The New Strategic Brand Management. 4th ed. London: Kogan Page Limited . p158-189. Kapferer, J.N (2012). The New Strategic Brand Management. 5th ed. London: Kogan Page Limited. p182-193 National Retail Federation. (2016). How Under Armour Is Changing The Way Athletes Live. [Online Video]. 5 February 2016. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOkzta6p8ME. [Accessed: 30 November 2016]. R204DESIGN . (2013). Under Armour retail concept . [Online Video]. 19 February 2013. Available from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdTPqPzvK9g. [Accessed: 30 November 2016]. Shah, O (2016). ‘Are Nike and Adidas under pressure from Under Armour?’, The Times Style. 28 August 2016. p20-21. Smith, G. (2015). Putting an End to a Preventable Scourge. Available: https://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2015/02/26/putting-end-preventable-scourge. Last accessed 5th Dec 2016. Under Armour. (2015). Our history. Available: http://www.underarmour.jobs/why-choose-us/our-history/. Last accessed 4th Dec 2016. Under Armour. (2016). The UA story: story. Available: http://www.uabiz.com/company/history.cfm. Last accessed 4th Dec 2016. On deciding who to focus on for the personal brand an interesting observation was that athletes who are successful brands position themselves differently depending on the sport they are associated with. For example, a rugby player may position themselves as being sophisticated, sharply dressed and gentlemanlike whereas a basketball player may want to brand themselves as being very hip and street (fashionably current and cool) in order to appeal to that sports-specific audience. Furthermore, even athletes within the same sport position themselves differently which is how they variously attract endorsements from rival brands such as sport clothing companies like Nike, Adidas or Under Armour.
Stephen Curry, in my view has developed into a very reputable and valuable brand over recent years, building up a successful brand portfolio thanks partly due to success on the court. His achievements over a recent period have helped to establish him as one of the best players in the league, thus attracting attention from global brands. The reason why I think he has become a reputable brand is because he has managed to distinguish himself from other big name Basketball player brands such as Lebron James and Kobe Bryant. Unlike James and Bryant who are both seen as very “in trend” in terms of fashion and slightly edgy, Curry’s appeal is in demonstrating a positive lifestyle that is at the heart of a number of charity campaigns
Brands may be distinguished through their different components. Similarly analysing each person as a brand will reveal different characteristics. Physically someone may be male, while another is female, one may have blue eyes the next green eyes. Also the way we portray ourselves varies as some are very outgoing, others are shy, and some people have a very sporting personality with fitness and keeping in shape being important for them. The point is that everyone is unique with potential to stand out. The brand identity prism shows this through six elements which we can analyse a brand such as a major retailer or in this case ourselves, an athlete and a sports team or a sports company.
“Brand personality has been the main focus of brand advertising since 1970” (Kapferer, 2008, p.159). The personality of the brand concerns how the brand portrays itself through its characteristics. Various methods can demonstrate these, for example the colour scheme used, the logo or the style of writing. Also, the brand could portray itself through brand endorsement in an advert. This allows the consumer to identify with the endorsing person that reflects the brand and then compare and align it to themselves. Personality is arguably one of the most important elements of the prism as it gives a brand a human identity, characteristics if you would. The way I try to portray myself is a very kind and humorous person which can also help to show a warmth and welcoming presence. Another part to my personality is being reliable, gentle and trustworthy which again shows a warm presence and demonstrates that the brand can be trusted by the consumer and hopefully endears itself to them. I am also competitive meaning that I strive for the best and persevere, which would appeal to the customer knowing that they are getting a quality brand that wants to compete with the other brands in the same field. The culture of the brand is in essence the values and principles that underpin it. For example, certain brands reflect the country of origin as with the reputation of German cars. Kapferer (2012, p.160) states that the “cultural facet of brands’ identity underlines that brands are engaged in an ideological competition”. Using the culture element of the identity prism on myself, a key part of this is being British as until now I have spent my whole life living there. This infers an association with British values and culture and their perception, where if the British brand is damaged this could cause negativity for my brand. However, culture can be seen as much more than just national identity, it can represent beliefs of the brand and what its ideology is and aspirations for the consumer. My main beliefs as a brand would be loyalty, kindness, social conscience and ethics, which would be reflected in the consumer of the brand. These four beliefs interlink as together they reflect a strong brand that aims to get the consumer’s trust and confidence so that over time they develop the same loyalty that the brand represents. Acting in an ethical way is a key element. The relationship part of the prism would position me as very down-to-earth, which means that I am very realistic person and have a practical mindset. Part of this is being family and friends orientated, underling that I am a very caring person so as a brand I would care what the consumer thinks. Also by having these close links (i.e. with family and friends) illustrates the brand would have close ties with its customers and thereby gain the consumer’s brand loyalty and the relationship would reward that loyalty and mirror it. This reinforces the culture dimension of the brand. Reflection is part of the constructed receiver part of the prism (how others see me) and develops an image over time that reflects the buyer. It is what image the buyer would like to be associated with and aspires to as opposed to what they are known for. The brand that would be reflective of me and thus the buyer would be one that represents being fitter, younger, ethical and successful. This would not necessarily appeal to every young successful person who is active, but it would appeal to people aspire to be like that and be associated with this particular brand. For example, the brand does not target the older generation, however they may buy it because of the association of being younger, successful and active and may feel these characteristics as a result of buying the brand. Self-image, just like reflection, is in the receiver part of the prism and is related to how the consumer feels about the product and their association with it. Many brands make the consumer feel differently, for example people who buy the drinks brand Pepsi feel cool and smart, whilst people who purchase a BMW feel powerful and important. In my view the brand which I represent would make the consumer feel optimistic and upbeat and that they are trying something innovative (leaders in innovation). It would make the consumer believe that they are in charge of their own destiny and able to make bold decisions without being judged. Although the consumer would not feel wealthy and up market it would however give them a sense of comfort and belonging to a respectable brand.
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