Taylor Swift loses the throne: Mbappémania arrives.
- Date
- Written by Alejandro García
While "madridismo" was still digesting the victory in the Champions League final, what is already the news of the summer was announced: Mbappé finally joins Real Madrid. After some close calls and distancing in the past, the signing has finally been consummated. But the Frenchman will not only be a key player in the Merengues' attack, but also a marketing asset with a lot of potential.
From Darwin & Verne we analyze the media and advertising impact of this signing, the "Mbappé brand", and the horizon it opens for both parties, Real Madrid and the player.
The notoriety of a historic signing
Talks about Mbappé's move to Real Madrid had turned into a summer classic, even forcing his former team to sign an anti "summer sales" clause. As we can see from the peaks, in every summer since 2020 there has been a spike in this "soap opera".
Finally, Real Madrid has secured his services after finishing his contract with PSG and changes at the social media level have shown the impact of the event. Real Madrid gained 2 million followers on Instagram in 4 days, Mbappé gained 3 million and PSG lost 27 thousand, according to data from Social Blade.
The numbers behind the signing announcement have also been spectacular. Popular journalist Fabrizio Romano made the signing official with his popular "Here We Go" and his tweet accumulated 140,000 retweets and 652,000 likes. For context, the analogous announcement of Messi's transfer to PSG generated 86,000 retweets.
Despite the limitations when it comes to announcing it (PSG has the player's rights until June 30), the spot on Instagram accumulates 10.3 million likes. Even Real Madrid's short official statement on X has generated 118 million views.
Undoubtedly, playing for Real Madrid generates more notoriety (162 million followers on Instagram) than at PSG (64.5 million). And this is noticeable in the volume of conversations in social networks: 2 million mentions in only 4 days.
The conversation has been global, representing the highest volume of mentions in cities as diverse as Madrid, Paris, London, Jakarta, Mexico City, Bogota, Lima and Kinshasha. Real Madrid is already a multinational valued at 5,097 million euros, the largest club globally according to Football Benchmark.
Particularly significant is the gender axis in the digital conversation. We observe how, despite obtaining masculinized data, the z female segment becomes one of the fastest growing audiences in the conversation.
These data show us the qualitative leap that soccer players are facing, being now the face of a global team with projection on all continents, and especially in Spanish-speaking countries. The exposure he will face at the white club is far superior to his previous stint at PSG.
Kylian Mbappé, a minimalist brand
This exponential increase in popularity contrasts with Mbappé's view of his personal brand until now. On a commercial and communication level, he is a player who takes the utmost care of his image. He avoids controversy and is very jealous of his personal life, making him a blank canvas for any brand.
However, he is very selective with the sponsorships he accepts. On his personal website he lists just three sponsors: Nike, Hublot and Oakley. These are high-end brands, but which earn him 20 million a year, compared to Cristiano Ronaldo's 90 million or Messi's 65 million, according to Forbes.
According to their own statements, this is a deliberate strategy, since he only wants to work with brands with which he shares values of lifestyle, excellence and competitiveness. This has led him to refuse to participate in advertising activities of brands such as Coca Cola, McDonald's, KFC or BetClic (betting house).
To give an example of the contrast between his approach and that of others, just this week Messi launched a drink with his image that looks too much like the famous "Prime" of YouTubers KSI and Logan Paul, which has generated controversy.
Real Madrid and an advertising asset to be polished
Sometimes players have a portfolio of brands and a public persona that can affect their team's reputation or conflict with their sponsorships. This is not the case with Mbappé and his minimalist and ethical management of sponsorships. His personal brand is very white (never better said) and light, ideal for a company like Real Madrid that also is based on values such as universality, prestige and passion. The club can strategically benefit from the fact that one of its main marketing assets is a figure that is so consistent with its brand values.
Mbappé gains access to the biggest visibility platform of his career, will there be a personal brand repositioning?
If we understand Mbappé as a brand, so far we have seen a pigeon-holed version in a few territories, by renouncing to take more advantage of his image. However, the increased exposure he will now enjoy could also lead to changes in his personal strategy.
