The Impact of Foreign Cheerleaders on the Brand Image of the Chinese Professional Baseball League

Abstract

This study investigates the collective impact of foreign cheerleaders on the brand image of teams in Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL), situated within a unique socio-cultural and political context. Through qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews with 13 senior CPBL fans, gender-balanced (6 male, 7 female) and age-diverse, alongside media discourse and cross-league comparisons, the research reveals that foreign cheerleaders significantly enhance international visibility, diversify fan demographics, and create commercial opportunities. Their participation drives the professionalization of local cheerleading while triggering negotiations over cultural adaptation, language integration, and entertainment-sport authenticity tensions. Findings uncover critical generational and gender divides: younger audiences embrace multiculturalism, senior fans prioritize tradition, and female fans explicitly advocate for gender equity reforms. The phenomenon of "soft cultural nativism" emerges as a key cultural adaptation mechanism. Although media amplification boosts commercialization, it risks fragmenting fan communities and eroding local baseball culture. The study advances sport brand community theory, cultural appropriation theory, and extends Gems’ (2020) framework of sport as a cultural battleground by demonstrating how foreign performers mediate global-local loyalty negotiations. Practical implications include adopting glocalized branding strategies and fostering culturally sensitive, ethical representations to sustain brand equity within Taiwan’s evolving baseball ecosystem.