Germany Knocks USA Off 'Best Nation' Top Spot After 5 Years

London (ots/PRNewswire) -

- Germany sees large gain in 'sports excellence', which helps in part to
drive it to first place
- USA is downgraded heavily by Russia and Egypt for role in global peace and
security
- Russia is only nation to suffer a precipitous global reputation drop; their
score drop for "peace and security" is the largest for any single attribute

After holding the number one place since 2009, the USA has this
year been pushed down to second place by Germany, which now takes the
lead in the Anholt-GfK Nation Brands Index[SM] (NBI[SM]).

People around the world now have more positive perceptions of
Germany than of 49 other developed and developing countries,
according to the annual NBI[SM] study. The study measures global
perceptions of each country, based on twenty-three different
attributes that make up the six overall dimensions on which national
image is based: exports, governance, culture, people, tourism and
immigration/investment. For the 2014 study, a total of 20,125
interviews were conducted across 20 countries.

Anholt-GfK Roper Nation Brands Index[SM]

Overall Brand Ranking 2014 (Top 10 of 50 Nations)

2014 rank 2013 rank
1 Germany 2
2 United States 1
3 United Kingdom 3
4 France 4
5 Canada 5
6 Japan 6
7 Italy 7
8 Switzerland 8
9 Australia 9
10 Sweden 10

Germany achieved the largest overall Nation Brands Index[SM] score
increase this year - partly due to its score gain on "sport
excellence", which is the largest gain seen this year for any single
attribute across the 50 measured nations.

Simon Anholt, an independent policy advisor, explains, "Germany
appears to have benefited not only from the sports prowess it
displayed on the world stage at the FIFA World Cup championship, but
also by solidifying its perceived leadership in Europe through a
robust economy and steady political stewardship. Germany's score
gains in the areas of 'honest and competent government', 'investment
climate', and 'social equality' are among the largest it achieved
across all the aspects covered by the NBI 2014 survey."

In contrast, the USA has shown the least impressive NBI[SM] gain
among the developed nations. While it still is seen as number one in
several areas, including creativity, contemporary culture, and
educational institutions, its role in global peace and security only
ranks 19th out of 50 nations.

Xiaoyan Zhao, Senior Vice President and Director of NBI[SM] at
GfK, comments, "In a year of various international confrontations,
the United States has lost significant ground where tension has been
felt the most acutely. Both Russia and Egypt have downgraded the U.S.
in an unprecedented manner, particularly in their perception of
American commitment to global peace and security, and in their
assessment of the competence of the U.S. government. However, on a
global level, it is Russia that has received the strongest criticism
from public opinion."

In previous years, Russia had shown upward momentum - but in the
2014 NBI study, it stands out as the only nation out of 50 to suffer
a precipitous drop. Russia's largest decline is registered on the
Governance dimension, especially for the attribute of its perceived
role in international peace and security. This is the most drastic
score drop seen for any single attribute across the 50 nations.
Overall in this year's study, Russia has slipped three places to
25th, overtaken by Argentina, China, and Singapore.

Ms. Zhao adds, "International diplomacy clearly reaches beyond the
realm of public opinion - however, policy makers need to be keenly
aware that the way in which a country is perceived globally can make
a critical difference to the success of its business, trade and
tourism efforts, as well as its diplomatic and cultural relations
with other nations. As our partner Simon Anholt often says, the only
superpower left in today's world is global public opinion."

For more information on the the Anholt-GfK Nation Brands Index,
please contact Xiaoyan.Zhao@gfk.com / +1-650-289-2051

About the Anholt-GfK Nations Brand Index[SM]2014

Conducted annually, the Anholt-GfK Nation Brands Index[SM]
measures the image of 50 countries, with respect to Exports,
Governance, Culture, People, Tourism and Immigration/Investment. In
2014, a total of 20,125 interviews were conducted in 20 countries,
with at least 1,000 interviews per country. Interviews were online
with adults aged 18 or over. The most up-to-date online population
parameters were used to weight the achieved sample in each country to
reflect key demographic characteristics such as age, gender and
education of the online population in that count. Additionally, in
the U.S., the UK, South Africa, India, and Brazil, race/ethnicity was
used for sample balancing. The report reflects the views and opinions
of online populations in the 20 countries surveyed. Fieldwork was
conducted from July 10 to July 28 2014 (extended to July 31 in
Egypt).

For more information on the Anholt-GfK Nation Brands Index, please contact:
Xiaoyan.Zhao@gfk.com / +1-650-289-2051
Press information contact: Amanda Martin, Global PR,
Amanda.Martin@gfk.com / +44-7919-624688

ots Originaltext: GfK SE
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