Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
Managing Sport and Leisure, 2025 (ESCI, Scopus)
Purpose: This study examines how Wives and Girlfriends of athletes (WAGs) develop personal brands, the role athlete partners play in this process, and how WAGs sustain brand relevance during and after relationship transitions. Research methods: The study adopts an exploratory qualitative design using 30 in-depth interviews with sports journalists, branding professionals, fans, and academics. Participants were selected for their professional or experiential insights into athlete–WAG branding dynamics. Results and Findings: The study develops a six-stage WAG brand lifecycle across two types of entrants: celebrity and non-celebrity WAGs. The lifecycle represents WAGs and athletes as co-branding agents whose brands are interlinked through shared visibility, credibility, and reputational spillovers. We also uncover brand resilience strategies WAGs adopt post-relationship, including identity repositioning, philanthropy, and entrepreneurial branding. Implications: The study offers guidance for athlete and WAG brand managers navigating identity alignment, visibility risks, and post-relationship brand sustainability in celebrity-driven markets. Research Contribution: The study advances sport branding scholarship by positioning WAGs as active brand actors create and sustain brand meaning both alongside and independently of their athlete partners. Originality/Value: By applying performativity theory and the ISBE framework, the paper reconceptualizes WAG branding as a dynamic, gendered, and strategic process within celebrity sport culture.