Strategic philanthropy of athletes after transgression: examining the congruence effect of pre-transgression and transgression issues

Purpose This study comprehensively explains how sports consumers evaluate athletes’ post-transgression philanthropic activities. We specifically focus on the congruence effect between the pre-transgression philanthropic endeavors and the transgression issue, shedding light on the effectiveness of these strategies in reinstating the positive image of athletes and associated entities. Design/methodology/approach This study employed a rigorous research design, replicating two studies using sports-related (n = 409) and non-sports-related (n = 404) transgression cases. Data were collected by the Amazon Mechanical Turk platform. A series of experimental studies aimed to investigate the congruence mechanism underlying athletes’ post-transgression philanthropic efforts. Findings When the post-transgression philanthropic initiative is related to the transgression, sport consumers are less likely to view it skeptically and are more inclined to positively evaluate the brand attitude and purchase intention, especially when the transgression is unrelated to the pre-transgression philanthropic efforts. Research limitations/implications As is the case with most research, this study has a limitation. This study used a fictitious athlete name to prevent any prior biases or preconceived notions about the athletes and to avoid any unforeseen influences of personal attitudes toward the athlete. However, designing this study around a fictitious athlete may pose construct validity issues because it may not reflect real-life interactions with the athletes. To increase the validity of findings, future research should aim to replicate the current findings using the names of actual athletes. Originality/value This unique approach provides valuable insights and equips sports marketers and brand managers with effective strategies to restore the positive image of athletes and associated entities after a transgression has been made public, empowering them to make informed decisions in challenging situations.