But his performances at Euro 2004 and the subsequent public reaction against him now afford us an equally valuable insight into the strategic disadvantages of a powerful brand.
A strong brand is often tempted to extend into new markets and activities.
In Beckham's case, fashion, music and shopping have been added to some of his more mundane duties, such as practice and training.
By drifting from core markets and core competences, brands can get into trouble. Twenty years ago, the strength of the Gucci brand allowed the firm to license its name to more than 12,000 products, but this enormous portfolio threatened Gucci's future. It was only when the Gucci family removed most of these extensions and returned its focus to the world of leather goods and fashion that the brand was revived.
Another danger of extending a strong brand is its relative vulnerability to specialist competitor brands that are not as diversified or diluted.
Wayne Rooney is the footballing equivalent of a specialist brand; all he does is eat, sleep and talk football. His recent displacement of Beckham as England's football idol demonstrates the power of focus over generality.
Similarly, the Land Rover Freelander is a clear market leader in the economy SUV category, ahead of brand extensions from bigger car companies such as Toyota and Honda. Land Rover is a specialist; it only makes SUVs.
This focus and its perceived or actual expertise are the keys to its success.
Strong brands also face a problem meeting customer expectations. We expect a strong brand to be better than its weaker rivals, and as a result our expectations increase. England lost to Portugal because of two missed penalties - one from Beckham and one from Darius Vassell. Vassell received great sympathy after his miss, while Beckham was vilified.
A strong brand is built on exceeding customer expectations, but that track record can be tricky to maintain. When Virgin entered the farrago that is the UK railway market, customers expected Sir Richard Branson to sort things out. The fact that Virgin's west-coast operation is no worse than all the other rail operators is no consolation to customers.
They expected Branson to crack it; the fact that he hasn't, has seen the company singled out for far more vilification than the other rail operators.
This is another problem for strong brands. Not only are they the victim of increased expectations, but when they fail to meet those expectations, the backlash is more vehement.
Beckham was unfairly singled out by the media, while a photographic portrait of him in a London art gallery was vandalised with the word 'looser'.
The very ubiquity that built the Beckham brand is now its biggest threat.
Similarly, nobody would have cared about the Dasani debacle had it not been owned by Coca-Cola. And last week's headlines regarding the imminent demise of Sainsbury's are as much the result of its former brand strength as its current mismanagement.
The good news is that some of the brands in this article will eventually bounce back. Gucci, for one, is now in rude health. Could Beckham revitalise himself in time for the next World Cup? In Germany? In 2006? Exactly 40 years after you-know-what? Great brands never die; they simply become more powerful. Perhaps the greatest chapter in Brand Beckham has yet to be written.
- Mark Ritson is assistant professor of marketing at London Business School
30 SECONDS ON ... FOOTBALLER BRAND STRENGTH
- Millward Brown used its BrandZ formula to plot the strengths of the Beckham and Rooney brands before and after Euro 2004. The formula segments consumers into those who have heard of a brand, find it relevant to them, would buy it, would put it in their list of favourites, and would always choose it over competitors.
- Before Euro 2004, 12% of people put Rooney among their favourite players, but this has risen to 31%.
- 13% of fans now regard Beckham as their favourite player, with 9% picking Rooney. Although 67% of fans consider Beckham 'OK', this figure dropped 8% over the course of the tournament.
- As for the other half of Brand Beckham, the research found a 27% drop in those who like Victoria.
- Sven Goran Eriksson also fared badly - the number of people regarding him as their favourite football personality dropped 11%.
.jpg)
.jpg)