Steelers beat one New England team; fall behind another

http://www.bizjournals.com/pittsburgh/stories/2008/12/01/daily6.html

The Pittsburgh Steelers slipped from first to third place on an annual survey of sports teams' brands.

The 2008 Eastern Conference champion Pittsburgh Penguins, however improved from 20th to No. 8 on the Turnkey Sports & Entertainment 2008 Team Brand Index.

"Pittsburgh fans get it – they know what makes a great sports team brand," Len Perna, president and CEO of Turnkey said in a statement. "The Steelers finished No. 1 overall in 2007, and actually indexed higher in 2008, but were passed by the Packers and Red Sox," said Perna. Fans rated 122 teams on 21 distinct factors, including how fans perceive entertainment value, how well they like the players, perceptions of ownership, and the team's commitment to winning.

The study also tested each team on 36 brand attributes. Pittsburgh fans rated "hard-working" as the most important attribute for a local sports team. The Penguins ranked most hard-working in Pittsburgh, according to Turnkey.

A separate part of the study asked for fans' perceptions of team sponsors. The 2008 Sponsor Loyalty Index found that Pittsburgh-area fans care who is sponsoring the Steelers and Penguins. "Both team brands ranked in the top 20 of all 122 teams – they both deliver for their sponsors," said Perna.

Heinz was designated the "most-admired sponsor" in Pittsburgh. Giant Eagle tied for second and was the most admired of the non-national sponsors. The study tracked consumer opinions on more than 150 local, regional and national companies that sponsor NFL, NBA, NHL and MLB teams.

Fans rated the National Football League as the "most-admired league" in Pittsburgh.

The team with the largest out-of-market following is the Yankees, the survey found.