Does it really matter? A study on soccer fans’ perceptions of ethical leadership and their role as “stakeowners”

Abstract

•Soccer fans are “stakeowners,” being stakeholders with rights and responsibilities.•Soccer fans largely support the notion of being a “stakeowner”.•Yet, soccer fans put more emphasis on their rights than on their responsibilities.•Soccer fans mainly care about fan-related ethical leadership aspects in their club.•The club’s leadership questions the importance of fans for soccer club leadership.Ethical leadership is increasingly studied in the context of soccer clubs, as it is believed to represent an effective answer to soccer’s “dark side.” However, current academic understanding is limited to key internal stakeholders’ perspectives, such as coaches and players. A highly relevant stakeholder group that is still largely neglected is fans, as they are believed to be uniquely able to influence leadership in sport clubs, while some of soccer’s ethical issues, such as violence and discrimination are strongly associated with fans. This study highlights this duality by referring to fans as “stakeowners,” namely legitimate stakeholders with certain rights as well as responsibilities. Moreover, the authors examine whether ethical leadership by soccer club leaders really matters to fans. Drawing on a qualitative case study in a Belgian professional soccer club, findings indicate fans care mainly about those aspects of ethical leadership that impact their own position, such as clear communication and fan empowerment. On the other hand, findings suggest fan influence on the leadership of their club should not be exaggerated. After all, the club’s leadership questions the critical importance of fans as being core to (soccer) management’s activities and leadership.