Big in Thailand

I love Arsenal Football Club. I have for as long as I can remember. My dad is an Arsenal fan, I watch games in Arsenal bars whenever I can, and over the years, I’ve noticed more and more Arsenal jerseys in America.

Yet Arsenal are not one of the big clubs here in Thailand. In terms of foreign jerseys worn on the street, Liverpool and Man United are the biggest, then Real Madrid, Chelsea, and maybe Barcelona. Arsenal only crop up occasionally.

But Thai people wear a lot of jerseys; brightly colored, real or fake, you’ll see them everywhere. So naturally I got to thinking, “could you use this to make Arsenal more popular here?” Football clubs, like all global brands, are very touchy about their copyrights. The late 90s and early 00s saw many clubs revamp their logos to be easier to recognize and harder to "steal." Arsenal were one of the early movers in this, eliminating most elements of their logo because they didn't have the rights to all of it. Fans, naturally, were unhappy with the change, but the demands of a competitive sport meant that clubs needed to get merchandise sales firmly under control.

However, this only works if governments enforce copyright laws. Southeast Asia, with a few exceptions, tends to take a relaxed view of intellectual property (IP). Teams, or the league as a whole, could pressure governments to crack down more, but considering the size of the market, that's probably a low priority; there’s lots of potential customers but they have relatively lower incomes. Arsenal, as a team with middling popularity, wouldn't have much bargaining power at the moment. But there is a way to change that.

To increase the club's popularity, they first need to increase its profile. Thailand is a place where image matters, and people notice what everyone else is wearing. Brand authenticity, in my experience, is not a concern to many people. I've seen “abibas” track suits, a Versace-made Juventus jersey, and even Gucci jackets with a distorted Mickey Mouse plastered on the back. I doubt any of the companies were involved in the design of such pieces. Yet they remain incredibly popular.

If more people wore Arsenal gear, especially clothes and accessories that had a sense of class about them, their peers would want to keep up. The club obviously does not have time to invest in a new line of luxury wear, and I'm sure Adidas would have something to say about them finding another clothing supplier. However, if the two partnered to hold a design competition, displayed entries on a website (only accessible in Thailand), and endorsed a winner, thousands of unofficial Arsenal shirts would be made and sold around the country. This increased visibility would come mostly via shirts, hats, etc. that look nothing like the real things, so they wouldn't compromise the genuine products much (whose demand would also rise as the most well-off seek to show that they can afford it). Over the course of several years, this would lead to Arsenal being the accepted team for aspiring Thai people.

Once they achieve that status, once the demand for Arsenal products is set firmly higher, then comes the time to push for stronger IP laws. Not only would their new popularity give them more bargaining power, but they would actually stand to gain in that stricter market. Yes, flooding it with imitation products beforehand is counterintuitive, but authentic jersey sales must be really low already. The only way to increase them is to first increase Arsenal's share of the attention market in Thailand. Without that, they'll forever be behind Liverpool and Man. United.

Having a third "big club" in the country would also increase the league's leverage when selling TV rights, since more games would be in high demand. Astronomical TV deals have ballooned EPL team coffers and given them a competitive edge in Europe. This is the reason a grassroots design competition could be successful even if copyright laws remain unenforced; it brings in more money whether or not jersey sales increase.

In short, there is little downside to popularizing Arsenal in Thailand with unofficial products. People are already not buying the real jerseys, and not because knock-offs are cheaper. There are just too few Arsenal fans there at the moment, so even if authentic shirts were all they could find, they wouldn't buy them. Unofficial shirts, if carefully shepherded to claim certain high-end parts of the market, would raise the club's profile and attract a fanbase who, by definition, are willing to spending money to show their devotion. After a few years, this would increase Arsenal leverage in both copyright claims and TV deals, leading to higher profits for both the team and the league as a whole.