From the field to the feed: how social media content and athlete personas shape consumer responses to athlete-created brands

Abstract

Purpose / Rationale This study examines how content-based factors in athlete-generated social media posts and athlete personas influence purchase intention toward athlete-created brands through consumers’ attitudes toward posts.Design / Methodology / Approach An online questionnaire distributed through social media yielded 300 valid responses. All respondents evaluated the same Instagram post from Stephen Curry’s Curry Brand. PLS-SEM was used to test the model.Findings Information value, entertainment value, and trustworthiness influence purchase intention indirectly through attitude toward the post. Perceived expertise and parasocial relationships have no significant indirect effects, although parasocial relationships are directly associated with purchase intention. Thus, relational attachment may bypass post evaluation.Practical Implications Athlete-created brands should combine informative and entertaining content with credible communication while fostering relational connections with consumers.Research Contribution This study advances research on athlete branding by shifting the focus from product endorsers to athletes as creators and owners of brands. It thereby highlights the distinctive role of athlete identity and communication in an entrepreneurial branding context.Originality / Value The findings reveal that content-related and athlete-related factors do not operate uniformly. Information value, entertainment value, and trustworthiness influence purchase intention through post-evaluation, whereas perceived expertise and parasocial relationships exhibit different patterns.

The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Managing Sport and Leisure, 2026 · DOI ↗