Fandi Ahmad: Football marketing needs more than hype

For football legend Fandi Ahmad, the moments that have stayed with him throughout his career have little to do with sponsorship logos or advertising campaigns. Instead, he remembers walking out of the tunnel during Singapore's 1994 Malaysia Cup final triumph to a sea of supporters dressed in red, with tens of thousands of fans rallying behind the Lions.

That emotional connection, he believes, is what brands should aspire to create as they look to tap into football's biggest moments.

Speaking to MARKETING-INTERACTIVE following his appointment as Lenovo Singapore's official brand ambassador as part of the brand's FIFA World Cup 2026 campaign, Fandi shared why authentic partnerships matter more than celebrity endorsements, how brands can build stronger relationships with football fans, and why investing in the sport beyond tournament season will leave the biggest legacy.

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For Fandi, every successful partnership begins long before a campaign goes live. Before putting his name to a brand, he wants to understand not just what it stands for, but why it wants to work with him in the first place.

"When a brand approaches me, the first thing I want to know is what its plan is," he said. "We appreciate that they value us. Then we look at the brand's plans, how they want to work with us, and make sure there's a mutual understanding. We study the company, and if they believe in us and we believe in them, we can work together."

To him, the strongest partnerships are built on shared values rather than commercial opportunity alone. That mutual trust, however, doesn't end when the contract is signed. Fandi believes athletes have just as much responsibility to protect a brand's reputation as brands do in choosing the right ambassador.

While talent may open the door to endorsement opportunities, he said personality, discipline and professionalism are what ultimately determine whether those relationships stand the test of time.

"Your personality is very important. It's your personality and attitude that connect you to the brand," he said, adding that maintaining a positive reputation requires discipline and sacrifice throughout an athlete's career," Fandi noted."

"If you behave badly, brands will reject you because they want ambassadors who reflect a positive image."

That respect, he added, should also extend to how brands use an athlete's identity. Fandi also urged marketers to seek permission before using a player's image in campaigns, noting that he has encountered scammers who have misused his likeness in recent years. For him, trust, transparency and mutual respect remain the foundation of any successful partnership.

The same philosophy applies to football fans.

Supporting local

While Singapore's football culture may differ from global ones, Fandi rejects the notion that local supporters are any less passionate. Instead, he believes brands need to understand the realities of supporting a national team in a small country, where success often comes in smaller victories than lifting major trophies.

"We need the support because without the support of our fans, it's difficult," he said, acknowledging that assembling a competitive national side is never easy.

"It's not easy trying to assemble a good national football team because we're a very small country," he added. 

Rather than simply capitalising on the excitement surrounding the FIFA World Cup, Fandi hopes brands will encourage fans to stay invested in Singapore football throughout its journey, celebrating progress as much as results.

That belief in long-term commitment is also why Lenovo's approach resonated with him.

Beyond fan experiences and World Cup activations, the technology company has partnered with the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) on a year-long AI-powered coaching initiative aimed at supporting the development of junior football coaches. Drawing on Fandi's coaching experience, the programme uses motion-capture technology and predictive AI models to help coaches analyse player movements and improve training methods.

Having spent decades developing football in Singapore himself, Fandi believes technology can complement, rather than replace, traditional coaching.

Recalling his own coaching methods, he explained that he had long relied on visual animations to help players better understand movement and positioning before stepping onto the pitch.

"I used animations to show players where to run and how the movement works," he said, explaining that visualising tactics helped players grasp concepts more quickly. While instinct and game awareness needed to excel in football can only be developed through experience, Fandi believes AI can accelerate that learning process by helping players better understand decision-making on the pitch.

Ultimately, however, Fandi believes football marketing succeeds not because of technology, endorsements or even the spectacle of the World Cup itself, but because it gives people something to believe in.

Looking back on Singapore's 1994 Malaysia Cup triumph, he still remembers the feeling of seeing thousands of supporters dressed in the nation's colours before kick-off.

"There were nearly 50,000 Singaporeans in the nation's colours," he recalled. "That inspired us."

For Fandi, that inspiration flows both ways. Just as fans can lift a team, brands also have an opportunity to strengthen the communities they choose to support. The campaigns that leave a lasting impression, he believes, are those that invest in the sport, inspire supporters and stand by the game long after the final whistle.

When so many people are supporting the team, they're also supporting the brand.

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