Even the strongest nations have been put through the wringer this year. As countries struggle to cope with the impacts of COVID-19, the value of a stable and strong nation brand has become increasingly more apparent.
This might be why Brand Finance’s annual Nation Brands report—which ranks the strongest nation brands across the globe—looks a little bit different this year.
Each year, Brand Finance measures the value and strength of nation brands. Using a number of metrics and data, nations are given a score out of 100. Here’s a look at the top 10 strongest nations, and how they scored:
Rank | Country | Score |
---|---|---|
1 | 🇩🇪 Germany | 84.9 |
2 | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 83 |
3 | 🇨🇭 Switzerland | 82.9 |
4 | 🇺🇸 United States | 82.8 |
5 | 🇨🇦 Canada | 81.7 |
6 | 🇸🇬 Singapore | 81.1 |
7 | 🇯🇵 Japan | 79.5 |
8 | 🇩🇰 Denmark | 79.3 |
9 | 🇫🇷 France | 79.1 |
10 | 🇳🇱 Netherlands | 78.6 |
Since 2015, Singapore has held first place as the strongest nation brand because of its world-class education, low crime, and prosperous economy.
However, Germany stole the top spot this year, which makes sense given Chancellor Merkel’s well-received response to COVID.
The Soft Power Index
This year, Brand Finance also added a new metric to the index, which measured a nation’s “soft power,” or its international reputation and influence.
Rank | Country | Score |
---|---|---|
1 | 🇺🇸 United States | 67.1 |
2 | 🇩🇪 Germany | 61.9 |
3 | 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 61.8 |
4 | 🇯🇵 Japan | 60.2 |
5 | 🇨🇳 China | 58.7 |
6 | 🇫🇷 France | 58.5 |
7 | 🇨🇦 Canada | 54.5 |
8 | 🇨🇭 Switzerland | 54.5 |
9 | 🇸🇪 Sweden | 51.9 |
10 | 🇷🇺 Russia | 51.0 |
Germany ranked second on the soft power index, while Singapore didn’t even make the top 10 list. This could be another reason why Germany was able to surmount Singapore as the strongest nation brand in this year’s edition of the report.