Abstract

In sport (and football), animals represent an important symbol of a club's identity, representing values of society and local culture (such as strength, passion, loyalty or courage). The use of animal imagery in sports marketing can be highly effective due to its ability to evoke strong emotional responses and create memorable brand associations. This chapter aims to illustrate two representative examples of the importance that some animals (real or imaginary) may represent in a sports club in Portugal, as a differentiating symbol in the brand, identity and products associated with the club. Thus, this chapter aims to present some insights for sports marketing, but also for the importance of animals in the domain of sports companies (and sports clubs in particular - FCPorto and Gil Vicente FC). Finally, limitations and lines of future research will be presented.