Super Bowl XLV: The Clash of the Brand Titans

Super Bowl XLV is upon us, bringing with it the accompanying maelstrom of hoopla and ritual. This game will be hard to pick, a couple of improvisational maestros under center, and a pair of stingy defenses. Should be one for the ages.

Of more interest to me, however, is the nature of the teams competing. According to several recent studies, both the Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers are two of the strongest team brands in all of professional sports.

This begs the question of why? The NFL lords over its 32 constituent franchises with an iron fist, dictating everything from philanthropic efforts, to the color of the players’ cleats. Any opportunity for a team to differentiate itself is both rare and closely monitored. In such a tightly strung ecosystem, the question as to how the Packers and the Steelers continue to engender such strong fan loyalty can’t be, as it often is, reduced to knee-jerk explanations like “history” and “tradition.” The sum of several, more complex factors combine to see both franchises endure as two of the NFL’s most-loved teams.

In order to understand why these brands remain popular independent of their win-loss record, I’ll examine four brand dimensions each franchise uses to its advantage in maintaining the emotional investment of fans.

Geography: Each team hails from parts of the country not known for pristine beaches or transient corporate executives. The Packers have become emblematic of the state of Wisconsin, perhaps the most emblematic state of the American Midwest. Wisconsinites are stoic people—self-reliant, hard working and unpretentious, values that over the years have come to define the Packers.

The Steelers franchise acquired its name from the tough and uncompromising steel mills that were the mainstay of Pittsburgh’s economy throughout the 20th century. As Steelers owner Art Rooney puts it: “I think there’s been a connection between our team and our region that is based on a blue-collar-work-ethic-type approach to life… The reason football became so popular here in western Pennsylvania was because the area was populated by people who were accustomed to and appreciated hard work and tough work, and wanted their football team to reflect that.”

In gritty, less transient, cities like Green Bay and Pittsburgh (or Manchester or Liverpool for that matter), sports teams often become inseparable from the fabric of the town, engendering a strong sense of identity for the locals. As University of Central Florida sports marketing professor Dr. Bill Sutton writes: “Cities with less migration in and out (Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Detroit) are more likely to have higher loyalties to their teams than cities with high migration patterns (most notably, Atlanta, Charlotte and Phoenix)."

Consistency: After the time-honored staples of differentiation and relevance, consistency is often seen as the next most important tenet of branding. Change, while inevitable, is not always seen as a good thing. An unwavering brand proposition begets familiarity and affection, traits that resonate strongly in Middle-America cities like Pittsburgh and Green Bay.

The motto of the University of Sydney, my alma mater, is the Latin phrase “sidere mens eadem mutate”—which means, "The constellation is changed, [but] the disposition is the same." This certainly holds true of the Steelers and Packers. From era to era, the faces may have changed, but the spirit and ethos of both teams remain constant. This is true of strong team brands around the world—those that are beloved by fans regardless of their current playing roster, coaching staff or whether the team is winning or losing. Over the years, both the Packers and the Steelers have drafted players and coaches that reflect the ethos of their cities. For the most part, prima donnas need not apply.

Aside from on-field performance, which is impossible to predict, both teams have become paragons of consistency in several domains. Neither team’s ownership has changed in decades (the Packers’ 112,000 shareholders, the Rooney family for the Steelers), coaches often enjoy long tenures, and perhaps most visibly, logos and uniforms for both teams remain simple and timeless.

Iconography: Each franchise possesses a smorgasbord of brand elements that have become synonymous with the NFL. For the Packers, it’s hard to go past the Vince Lombardi Trophy, named for the venerable Pope of Green Bay, a figure whose wisdom and notoriety now spans motivational literature to the corporate boardroom.

The winner of the first two Super Bowls, any viewing of an NFL documentary wouldn’t be complete with wonderful old grainy footage of Packers games, usually in sub-zero temperatures at the “Frozen Tundra” of Lambeau Field. Perhaps the most famous of these is the 1967 Ice Bowl. In addition, Packers' home games immediately conjure images of the “Lambeau Leap,” a curious touchdown celebration where Packer players are embraced, and often groped, by corn-fed dairy farmers wearing cheesehead hats. (Full disclosure, I’m a Minnesota Vikings fan).

For the Steelers, it’s hard to go look past the flailing “Terrible Towels,” an unwelcoming sea of golden propellers that greets every team unfortunate to visit the Steel City. The towels double as both a victory salute or rallying cry for fans at Heinz Field. Any towel-toting Steelers fan will often remind you that the Steelers’ commitment to substance over style is embodied by the iconic single decal helmet, a uniform element that’s remained unchanged since 1962.

On field icons have also personified the ethos of the Steelers brand. Quarterbacks Terry Bradshaw and Ben Roethlisberger have embodied unflappable toughness more than Brady-esque heartthrobedness. The 1970s Steel Curtain Defensive line, led by “Mean Joe Greene,” paved the way for a great tradition of immovable defenses in Pittsburgh. This legacy is embodied today by the swagger of James Harrison and the mercurial Troy Polamalu.

Community: The truth is, nowadays fans don’t need to live close to their favorite team to build an emotional bond with them. However, the Packers and the Steelers have worked hard at building both home and out of market fanbases for a long time. Each team has countless team-themed bars and supporter clubs in major cities all over the country, providing opportunities for “satellite fans” fans to enjoy the atmosphere, camaraderie and to bask in reflected glory from afar.

First came satellite TV, then the Internet, now social media has ratcheted the intimacy and proximity up a notch. With online platforms now playing a pivotal role in fostering fan engagement, the Packers and Steelers are performing well in those realms too, At the time of writing, the Steelers are ranked second and the Packers seventh in the combined total of Twitter followers and Facebook “Likers.”

Summary: While tradition and history play a role in building a team’s brand strength, both elements won’t automatically manifest a strong team brand. The Packers and the Steelers have astutely identified the advantages available to them and parlayed these advantages into the creation of sports team juggernauts. No small feat in the hypercompetitive arena of the NFL.