#Trending towards brand crisis management: the case of the Seattle Kraken and BookTok

Purpose Sport organizations' social media activity contributes to their brand equity; however, interactions can become a crisis if team engagement is deemed controversial, in opposition to their brand personality or negatively impacts financial/brand reputation. Therefore, a crisis communication strategy is paramount. This case study examines the NHL's Seattle Kraken's use of a social media trend (i.e. engagement with the hockey romance community on BookTok and related influencer) and the ensuing brand crisis, response and public perception. Design/methodology/approach A case study with a multi-phased qualitative analysis – (1) directed content analysis (framed by the Situational Crisis Communication Theory) of the brand crisis responses and (2) thematic analysis of public perception– was employed based on crisis response statements, mass media and social media accounts. Findings The crisis responses varied by stakeholder. The team followed Deny (Scapegoat, Blame), Diminish (Excuse) and Bolstering strategies, while the league used Deny. The athlete and his family used Bolstering (Victimage). Public perception was categorized into three themes (Passionate Proponents, Accountability Advocates, Consent Crusaders). Originality/value This study extends previous research by applying the SCCT to a sport crisis that occurred due to a sport organization's social media activity. More specifically, this work examines the impact of participating in controversial – trend-based – engagement strategies on social media (i.e. TikTok) on a team's brand due to both general engagement and the resulting actions and responses. The findings provide guidance to sport organizations actively participating in social media trends that may or may not align with their overarching brand.