Why does Gazidis feel van Persie is the most marketable?

[Kraig]

surely our most marketable asset is theo?

 

[qs]

Not until he solidifies himself as a starter for England

 

[Swish]

Or even a starter for Arsenal.

With the choices of Arshavin, Eduardo, Rosicky, Nasri along with less favourable players such as Eboue, Vela and Wilshere, there's no longer a guaranteed spot for Theo.

 

[Kraig]

hes not there in a footballing sense, but commercially he's big money. whose gracing the front cover of fifa next to rooney and lamps? whose spearheading a nike campaign with rooney? theo is worth big money now (i reckon he'd be top 3 in shirt sales for us) and hes a nice, level headed guy who no-one (bar lagos and ibby) dislike.

 

[truth_hurts]

weren't we wondering why Theo was giving so many interviews not too long ago?

The only player in our squad who speaks english!

 

[Nela]

IMO...

Most marketable in England: Theo

Most marketable in the world: Cesc

 

[truth_hurts]

Nela thats probably right although I do wonder sometimes how highly Fabregas is rated outside of England and Spain. We see him as a world star but in reality does he really have global commercial appeal?

 

[GaelForce22]

hes not there in a footballing sense, but commercially he's big money. whose gracing the front cover of fifa next to rooney and lamps? whose spearheading a nike campaign with rooney? theo is worth big money now (i reckon he'd be top 3 in shirt sales for us) and hes a nice, level headed guy who no-one (bar lagos and ibby) dislike.

Definitely in England. Not sure about the rest of the world but I'd imagine he doesn't have the same appeal as RVP or Cesc in that respect (yet).

 

[Nela]

Nela thats probably right although I do wonder sometimes how highly Fabregas is rated outside of England and Spain. We see him as a world star but in reality does he really have global commercial appeal?

I'm Swedish and Fabregas is without question our star player here. Most people outside England that I meet see Fabregas as our number 1 player. He's the player most opposition fans rate the highest. He's the player that could command the most in the transfer market. And I suspect, he's the player with most appeal among women and girls.

I did a quick youtube search on a couple of our players and look at how many results I got.

RvP: 1490
Theo: 1220
Fabregas: 6240 :shock:

That's a pretty big difference.

 

[truth_hurts]

Interesting stuff Nela. Although he is undoubtedly respected as a footballer I just can't imagine him being a huge marketable player as despite being a quality playmaker he isn't the type of player who will excite neutral fans as he doesn't dribble much, score many spectacular goals or do fancy tricks.

I think attacking players are usually the most marketable followed by local players and then captains. Back on topic I very much doubt it is Gazidis' plan for RVP to become more of a spokesperson for our team.

 

[Nela]

Interesting stuff Nela. Although he is undoubtedly respected as a footballer I just can't imagine him being a huge marketable player as despite being a quality playmaker he isn't the type of player who will excite neutral fans as he doesn't dribble much, score many spectacular goals or do fancy tricks.

I think attacking players are usually the most marketable followed by local players and then captains. Back on topic I very much doubt it is Gazidis' plan for RVP to become more of a spokesperson for our team.

I agree with most of what you said in terms of what type of players usually become the most marketable, particularly the attacking flair players who score a lot. But we just don't have any true star striker/attacker currently. Arshavin is rated very highlighy by most, but he's still not as big as Fabregas internationally. Theo is still more potential than anything else. And RvP, while respected and rated, isn't really that star player either. So out of what we have, Fabregas is definetely the most marketable IMO.

 

[Zico]

In football, the most important determinant of marketability is and has been proven ABILITY.

I have spent time in North America, Africa and Europe over the last few years and, of the players that remain in the club, the ones that most CONSISTENTLY excite football fans (Arsenal and otherwise) are Arshavin and Fabregas.

With any of the other players, there is considerable debate due to their character and ability.
Character: Gallas is better than John Terry, but has never managed to endear himself to people as a courageous leader, hence he fails.
Credibility: Theo has not yet consistently produced the magic to appeal to enough fans, particularly outside the UK, where people do not NEED him to be good. Van Persie similarly annoys a lot of people due to his injuries and lack of consistent form in the past. Strikers need to be known for scoring a la Henry, Eto'o, Villa, etc.

If we want to sell things, our best bets are Arshavin and Fabregas; although RVP has his merits. He is skilled and even my mother thinks he's a looker.

 

[Thommybhoy]

Google trends
Cesc Fabregas v Andrei Arshavin
Cesc Fabregas v Robin van Persie
Cesc Fabregas v Theo Walcott
Cesc Fabregas v Eduardo da Silva
Cesc Fabregas v Arsène Wenger

 

[Klaus Daimler]

I'm wondering how much merchandise we're selling in Russia right now, speaking of. Most of the shirt market over there is constituted by replicas but there's still bound to be a considerable amount of original fabric on sale. It would be very interesting to see some numbers indicating how much we've gained from a commercial and public relations perspective by signing Arshavin. For £12+3 million he's not just one of the best transfers Wenger's ever made, he might very well be one of the most profitable too.

 

[ibby]

Skillful, tall, good looking, white, star of one of the most recognisable football nations in the world, scores spectacular goals, approachable in interviews.

He has the factors that transcend appeal to football fans alone. Domestically, Theo has the edge but VanPersie is a marketing agents dream on a global scale.

Does that mean if you're black or have a tad darker hue you're more or less not marketable material? I fail to see how being white makes you more appealing to general public. although the same public elected BNP mps, so what do i know!

Globally it makes a difference. Sad but true.

No it doesn't, if anything, it makes less of a difference because you're reaching a much wider audience. Ask Muhammad Ali, Tiger Woods, Pele, Michael Jordan and even Usain Bolt, five of the most marketable men ever to walk the earth.

 

[asajoseph]

Or Thierry Henry.

Being head and shoulders above the rest of the world helps though.

 

[hujja]

Robin's our pretty boy. Every team has one.

 

[ibby]

True but the five I mentioned and to an extent Thierry Henry are more marketable than the likes of Phelps, Federer, Thorpe, Sampras and to an extent Gretzky who are/were equally dominant. Not that I think skin colour has anything to do with it, it doesn't.

 

[asajoseph]

I just can't get those stupid Gillette adverts out of my head now...

 

[Klaus Daimler]

Speaking of shaving commercials: <a class="postlink" href="http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xaivpr_ronaldo-shaving_sport" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xaivpr ... ving_sport</a>

I love how they chosed the man with the fattest face in football to promote a new razor. You can't even see where his chin ends and his neck begins