The Influence of Sports Celebrity Credibility on Purchase Intention: The Moderating Effect of Gender and Consumer Sports-Involvement

Abstract

This study investigates the effects of sport’s celebrity endorsement on purchase intention. More specifically, this study seeks to (1) identify the extent to which the sports celebrity’s credibility influences consumer purchase intention; (2) the extent to which gender moderates the effect of sports celebrity endorsement on purchase intention; and (3) to what extent consumer sports-involvement moderates the effect of a sports celebrity endorsement on purchase intention. One famous Brazilian soccer player and four product categories were used as stimuli. The research method used was a survey, which has included 1,025 respondents. Data analysis was performed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Structural equation modeling (SEM), using the ADF technique, was applied to test the substantive hypotheses. To test the hypotheses of the moderating effect of gender and consumer sports-involvement, the research used the multigroup analysis technique. The empirical results support the relationship between a sport celebrity’s endorsement and purchase intention. The moderating effects of gender and sports-involvement were also empirically supported, but only partially.

Keywords

• sport celebrity
• source credibility
• endorsement
• sport involvement