A brand name is perhaps a company’s biggest asset. It’s something that should be guarded. Unfortunately, the Premier League simply doesn’t get it and, as a result, is facing an identity crisis.
Currently all around the world, England’s ultimate soccer league is most commonly referred to by one of three names: the Premiership, Premier League and English Premier League. Imagine then how much confusion there’s going to be in 2010 when a new cricket league is launched in England named — yes — the English Premier League and will be using the same acronym, EPL.
The English version of the Twenty 20 cricket league is riding the coattails of the mega successful Indian Premier League which launched this past Spring.
To me, the brand names Premier League and English Premier League are synonymous especially outside the UK. If I was Premier League chairman Richard Scudamore, I’d be on the phone to my legal counsel to determine the best course of action.
Domestically that would understandably be a significant issue, but abroad the football league easily overshadows cricket (save for those few obvious strongholds – India, Pakistan, etc.) and to that degree wont really interfere.
I suppose technically, its the ‘Barclays Premier League,’ and the cricket league, assuming it obtains its own sponsorship, would go by another name.
Only one problem – It’s not the EPL. It’s the BPL – Barclay’s Premier League. They already gave up the name. Stupid, but that’s what they did.
Problem is that unofficially everyone outside of the UK knows it as the EPL. Officially it’s the BPL, but how many people ever use BPL?
Cheers,
The Gaffer