Gran Canaria has taken advantage of the first week of August to emulate the strategy of the neighboring island and promote itself as a tourist destination internationally.
The tourism authorities of Gran Canaria and Tenerife have had a very productive first week of August. A few days ago, we discussed how both islands were strengthening their tourism marketing strategies : Gran Canaria with the renewal of the capital's tourism brand and the launch of an app for the Fiestas del Pino (Pine Festival), and Tenerife internationally with a promotional campaign in two of Germany's main resorts, aiming to reach more than 10 million Germans.
However, Gran Canaria has not wanted to stop with the desire to promote its brand internationally and has done so in a quite striking way. Through an agreement with Norwich City, the city's English soccer club that plays in the country's second division, the Gran Canaria tourist brand will be promoted on its shirts. A strategy that is not unknown to the tourist institution, since for years Gran Canaria has been the main sponsor that can be seen on the UD Las Palmas shirt, however it is the first time it has been done with a foreign team .
The English club unveiled this new agreement with a video on its official Twitter account showcasing various landscapes of the island and the Gran Canaria tourism brand logo printed on the sleeve of the club's kit. Norwich City's choice to promote the island is no coincidence, as the English club has a strong connection with UD Las Palmas. The yellow kit and the nickname "Canaries" (referring to the bird on their crest) have fostered a close relationship between the island team and the British club, a connection confirmed a few weeks ago when a delegation from the English club visited the Gran Canaria Stadium.
With this promotion, Gran Canaria hopes to gain even more notoriety in a market where it is already one of the preferred destinations for its travelers. To do this, it will show its brand on the shirt of one of the clubs belonging to the Championship (the second English division), which last season had more than ten million spectators, thus positioning itself as the fifth European league in number of spectators only by behind the first divisions of Germany, Spain, England and Italy. These incredibly high numbers for a second division positioned this championship even ahead of the French first division, where players like Messi, Mbappé and Neymar participated last season.
Furthermore, in the predictions for promotion for the following season, Norwich is among the main candidates, so the projection of Gran Canaria's tourism brand could be even greater if “the Canaries” have a good season.
