Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
KINESIOLOGIA SLOVENICA, cilt.26, sa.3, ss.96-120, 2020 (ESCI)
Due to technology, countries have been introduced to new sports. With more demand, interest, and coverage, new sports have become so established in a society that it is as if they had always existed. Thus, mainstream and niche sports concepts emerged. Mainstream sports are those that can gather mass media and public coverage, while niche sports are those that are less popular or nonexistent. This study focuses on a niche sport in Turkey, that is, rugby; this is a sport that is not even in the top 15 popular sports in Turkey. As the aim of this study is to explore difficulties faced in the branding and marketing of a niche sport in a new area, this study uses the case study of Sivas Kangals Rugby FC. The current study adopted an inductive qualitative design. The study is based on semi structured interview of four stakeholders: the coach, athletes, sports journalists and fans. The results of the study highlighted the difficulties a niche sport could face, why niche sports faced difficulties, reasons for playing rugby, and marketing techniques for a niche sports club. Furthermore, the study also highlighted the positive effects of niche sports and the benefits of a fan base.