League Fans Research Articles

Weekend (Keyboard) Warriors: Differences in Social Media Consumption and Production Between NFL and College Football Fans

Sports fans are often some of the most passionate groups of fans and the use of social media can intensify those feelings, both in expressing their feelings and consumption of content. Football fans are a unique group in American sports culture, but how much difference is there within that group in terms of these behaviors? Using a social identity approach, this manuscript analyzed the degree to which team identification and fan identification played a role in the social media consumption and production in college football and National Football League (NFL) fans. A total of 586 fans responded to a survey that examined respondent’s team and fan identification, as well as social media consumption, creation, and sharing behaviors. Results indicated that college football fans generally identified with fellow fans of their favorite football team and consumed, created, and shared social media more frequently and with greater intensity than their NFL counterparts. Key differences between college football and NFL fans included fan identification predicted social media consumption and creation, while team identification predicted social media sharing among both college and NFL fans.

Football Belongs to the People: A Social Identity Perspective on Attitudes Toward the European Super League in the English Premier League

The announcement of the European Super League (ESL) led to massive protests in England. While the ESL is officially being reshaped and may resurface, there is a dearth of empirical studies on the motives associated with attitudes toward the ESL. In this research, we explored attitudes toward the ESL among Premier League fans by conducting an online survey 36 hours after the ESL announcement (N = 1,346 fans of Premier League clubs, among which 832 fans of the Big Six clubs involved in the ESL). Fans of the Big Six held more positive attitudes toward the ESL compared to fans of the Other 14 Premier League clubs. However, fans of the Big Six also perceived the ESL as more threatening to their relationship with their team and reported less consumption intentions toward their clubs. From a social identity perspective, team narcissism among fans was positively linked to support for the ESL, primarily through glory hunting—a form of fair-weather fandom. In contrast, secure team identification was negatively related to ESL support. We discuss attractiveness of the ESL for team narcissists and the threat it represents for long-standing fans.

Exploring the impact of Qatar’s soft power sponsorship in the Indian Premier League: a social identity perspective

PurposeDrawing upon the Social Identity Theory, this research aims to investigate the effectiveness of Qatar’s soft power sponsorships among the Indian Premier League (IPL) fans in India. We explore the relationship between team identification, team-sponsor fit, and purchase intention of sports fans, while also examining the moderating effect of sponsor brand awareness in the context of the IPL.Design/methodology/approachUsing a quantitative research design, we conducted both offline and online surveys from sports fans. The proposed model was examined using Confirmatory Factor Analysis and Partial Least Square-Structural Equation Modelling to test the study’s hypotheses.FindingsThe results reveal a positive and significant association between team identification and team-sponsor fit, and team-sponsor fit and purchase intention of sponsor brands. Further, brand awareness moderates the relationship between team-sponsor fit and purchase intention of sponsor brands, but not on the team identification and team-sponsor fit relationship.Research limitations/implicationsThis research adds to the paradigm of social identity theory and soft power sponsorship research. By providing insights into fans’ predisposition towards the team sponsors, the study will help managers design effective brand promotion strategies.Originality/valueThis research is the first to explore the effectiveness of soft-power sponsorships in the Indian mega-sports landscap. It is also the first to explore the moderating effect of sponsor brand awareness on sponsorship effectiveness, which is determined through the purchase intentions of the sponsor brand.

Co-producing virtual consumption extraordinary experiences: a netnography of Brazilian NBA fans

The concept of extraordinary experience in the consumer culture tradition it is a seminal theme since 1980. Over the last few decades, discussions have advanced to incorporate virtual ambiance, prosumption abilities, and interaction between peers. Likewise, the consumption of sports leagues has been reframed based on these three emerging themes. Thus, the present study seeks to understand the consumption extraordinary experiences of Brazilian NBA fans through their virtual interactions. To this end, a netnography was carried out between 2018 and 2020 on Twitter. The results point to the overlapping media and sports aspects that allow Brazilian fans of the league to experience liberating or stochastic moments and produce their performances or live adventures with NBA broadcasts. Consequently, such findings endorse the ability of sports league fans to prosume extraordinary experiences aligned with elements that reflect sports business management efforts.

Stars and Spikes: Analyzing Fan Attraction to Star Players in the Philippine Professional Volleyball League

The study sought to describe fan consumption patterns in volleyball, identify factors influencing fan engagement, pinpoint attractive attributes of volleyball players, and compare influences on fanhood across demographic groups. The research was conducted in Pasig City, focusing on a geographically delimited non-probability sample. Data was collected through in situ surveys using questionnaires to obtain participants’ demographic profile and their motivations, preferences, and consumption patterns as league fans during match days, specifically during the last preliminary round of the league’s conference in the third week of April, with particular emphasis on the timing of visits across different days of the week. Two hundred fifty respondents participated in the survey, comprising both genders ranging in age from 10 to 78 years. Results reveal that participants identify as avid league fans and consider having a favorite league player as “definitely important” in connection with their fanhood. As to the traits of star players that attract them, 11 attributes are figured highly: passionate, professional, respectful, fair, approachable, humble, exciting, entertaining, winnable, articulate, and humble. The results provide contemporary insights into sports consumption motivations and attitudes of league fans, which can be instrumental in developing effective marketing strategies, enhancing spectator experience, and deepening the understanding of sports fandom among the Filipino audience.

Social and contextual factors associated with drinking before, during and after watching Australian Football League games: A pilot ecological momentary assessment study.

The aim of this study was to: (i) determine the feasibility of using ecological momentary assessment to collect data from Australian Football League (AFL) fans; (ii) explore pre-game, during-game and post-game consumption patterns of AFL fans; and (iii) explore the social and setting-related factors associated with risky single occasion drinking (5+ drinks) among AFL fans. Thirty-four participants completed up to 10 ecological momentary assessment surveys before, during and after 63 AFL games (n = 437 completed surveys). Surveys collected data about their drinking, and their social and environmental milieu (e.g., location, company). Binary logistic regression analyses clustered by participant identified which game-day characteristics were associated with higher odds of risky single occasion drinking. Significant differences between pre-game, during-game and post-game drinking on social and environmental factors were explored using pairwise comparisons. Risky single occasion drinking was more likely when games began in the early-afternoon (1-3 pm) than late-afternoon (3-6 pm), when participants watched the game at a stadium or pub compared to home, and when participants watched the game with friends compared to family. Pre-drinking was more likely before night games and post-drinking was more likely after day games. Drinking during the game was heavier when watching the game at a pub and when watching with a combined group of friends and family. Preliminary findings suggest that social and contextual factors matter in the way alcohol is consumed while watching AFL games. These findings require further investigation in larger samples.

Fandom in the Indian Premier League: Factors that drive team associations

With the Indian Premier League now one of the most popular sporting competitions in India, marketers looking to reach cricket fans must recognise and understand the many factors that influence their affinity towards their favoured team. This case study of Indian Premier League fans investigates the various factors that motivate fans to associate with a specific team. The findings of this research will help sports team managers to engage better with targeted fans/audiences and will also assist marketers in strategising initiatives to strengthen their company’s brand equity, particularly in India.

Safety Measures In The Amateur Football League Fans' Perspective

Bu çalışma Erzurum amatör futbol ligini izlemek için müsabaka alanında bulunan taraftarların, müsabakalar için alınan güvenlik önlemlerine karşı bakış açılarını ortaya koymayı amaçlamaktadır. Bu çalışma, katılımcıların güvenlik önlemlerine yönelik bakış açılarını ortaya koymak açısından tanımlayıcı bir yapıdadır. Çalışma evrenini Erzurum amatör futbol ligi müsabakalarındaki taraftarlar oluşturmaktadır. Örneklem grubu ise evren içerisinden rastgele seçilen ve araştırmaya katılmayı kabul eden 316 taraftardan oluşmaktadır. Veri toplama aracı olarak kişisel bilgi formu ve taraftarların alınan güvenlik önlemlerine yönelik bakış açılarını belirlemek için “Sporda Güvenlik” ölçeği kullanılmıştır. Verilerin normal dağılım göstermesi nedeniyle parametrik testlerden One Way Anova Testi kullanılmıştır. Araştırma neticesinde; yaş değişkenine göre alınan güvenlik önlemlerine, güvenlik sistemlerinin kullanılma algısına ve gerekli kontrol işlemlerinin yapılma algısı sonuçlarına göre 25 ve altı yaş grubunda olan katılımcıların diğer yaş aralığındaki katılımcılara göre daha düşük ortalamalara sahip oldukları; katılımcıların eğitim durumu değişkenine göre daha düşük düzeyde eğitim seviyelerine sahip olan katılımcıların daha yüksek düzeyde eğitim seviyelerine sahip olan katılımcılara göre yüksek düzeyde ortalamalara sahip oldukları ve katılımcılara stadyumlarda yaşanan şiddetin sorumlusunun kim olduğuna yönelik yöneltilen soruya göre ağırlıklı olarak meydana gelen şiddet olaylarının sorumlusunun tek bir grupta toplanmadığı; sporcular, taraftarlar ve yöneticiler üzerine yoğunlaştığı görülmektedir. Bu çalışma ile amatör futbol müsabakalarının düzenlendiği tesislerin güvenlik önlemleri bakımından yetersiz olduğu sonucuna varılmıştır.

“Save Our Spikes”: Social Media Advocacy and Fan Reaction to the End of Minor League Baseball

On October 18, 2019, The New York Times reported that Major League Baseball was eliminating more than 40 teams from its minor league system. Fourteen months later, some teams permanently ceased operations when contraction became official. During those 14 months, fans and community members joined advocacy campaigns to save their teams. Given how minor league fans have unique, community-based identities, social media may help them communicate support for their teams during a threat. Using a framework of social media advocacy, the study sought to (1) understand the advocacy efforts present on social media and (2) the tone and emotions manifest in tweets related to contraction. Using quantitative methods, the study found that most discussions of contraction were negative in tone and contained emotions like anger. The most often used advocacy strategy was information, which may have been a lost opportunity for fans to rally support. As time moved on, tweets contained less negativity, more sadness than anger, and more use of the community advocacy strategy, providing evidence that fans found contraction inevitable. The study makes a contribution by bringing advocacy communication into the discussion of sport fandom and uses social media data to extract fan emotions during identity threats.

A Study of Satellite Fans’ Existing Team Identification and Attitudes Toward a New, Local Franchise: A Case Study of UK-Based National Football League Fans

Abstract: Sports teams have become global brands developing strongly identified ‘satellite’ fans who are distant from the team’s local market. There is a paucity of studies examining how satellite fans preemptively perceive the idea of a franchise being established in their local market. Using quantitative and qualitative survey data, the current study examines 597 UK-based, American National Football League fans’ team identification with current franchises and their attitudes toward a hypothetical new London-based franchise. The results of multiple linear regression, chi-square analysis, and thematic analysis indicate (1) team identification strength is significantly predicted by domain identification, years of fandom, vicarious achievement, London game attendance, and team playing style and (2) there is low likelihood that fans would want or support a local franchise. However, identification with London may encourage team-switching and certain fan segments contravened team identification theory expectations. Implications of the findings for marketers strategizing international growth are discussed.

Examination of Esports Fans’ Live Streaming Experiences Using an Extended Expectation-Confirmation Model: A Case Study of the King Pro League

Live streaming is an essential means through which spectators view and engage with esports. In this study, an extended model is proposed and tested based on the expectation confirmation theory to examine esports fans’ live streaming experience and the factors contributing to their intention to continue using particular live streaming platforms. Survey data (N = 1004) were collected from King Pro League fans in China and analyzed using structural equation modeling. The results demonstrate that effort and enjoyment expectancies are important factors driving fans’ confirmation of expectations regarding live streaming services. The findings also confirm that both spatial presence and co-presence positively relate to viewers’ satisfaction with a live streaming platform and their continued intention to use it. This study provides new insights into esports fans’ viewing practices and the experiences they find most engaging via live streaming platforms.

Batting Outside the Field

This study examines the relationship between cognitive awareness and perceived knowledge of sports fans’ social media engagement behaviors. Data were collected through an online survey of 236 adults from India who identified as Indian Premier League (IPL) fans. The findings of the study suggest that perceived knowledge and cognitive awareness of sports are precursors to social media engagement behaviors of sports fans. Further, sports fandom mediates links between perceived knowledge and cognitive awareness with social media engagement. The findings hold special significance for contemporary COVID scenarios because physical engagement is being substituted by digital engagement.

The Spatial Representation of Consumer Dispersion Patterns via a New Multi-level Latent Class Methodology

Consumer dispersion analysis divides aggregate markets into smaller geographic units that marketers can target with their promotional mix. However, dispersion patterns are not always contiguous. Using survey data from National Football League (NFL) fans, we introduce a new hierarchical expectation-maximization (EM) bi-level clustering model that iteratively classifies both teams and fans (nested within teams) based on the spatial heterogeneity of fans in terms of both distance and direction. The proposed multi-level latent class model with a variable number of classes at the lower level outperforms benchmark models in a Monte Carlo simulation study and points to three non-contiguous team segments with a varying number of fan group vectors in the NFL application. We present these results in two-dimensional consumer dispersion maps and report corresponding differences in consumer behavior.

Workington Man, Brexit and populism: discussions of politics, identity and class among rugby league fans online

Workington Man, Brexit and populism: discussions of politics, identity and class among rugby league fans online

Sport Fans’ Price Sensitivity Based on Loyalty Levels: A Case of Korean Professional Baseball League

For the sustainable development of the Korean Professional Baseball League (a.k.a., KBO League), it is critical to propose profitable and efficient pricing strategies for each team in the KBO League. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to understand KBO League fans’ perceptions of price sensitivity. More specifically, this study explored how fans’ perceptions of price sensitivity and latitude of price acceptance vary between different loyalty groups. A total of 213 valid responses were recruited from KBO League fans by using a convenience sampling approach. As a result, based on the levels of attitudinal loyalty and behavioral loyalty, fans were classified into four categories: loyal fans, latent fans, spurious fans, and indifferent fans. Moreover, loyal fans were found to be less sensitive to the ticket price increase of different levels (i.e., 10%, 20%, and 30%), followed by latent fans, spurious fans, and indifferent fans. Meanwhile, loyal fans have the highest level of the latitude of price acceptance, followed by latent fans, spurious fan, and indifferent fans. The findings of this study contribute to a better understanding of sport fans’ responses to the change of ticket price and their perceptions of the accepted price range. Meanwhile, this study offers practical implications for marketers of KBO League teams to develop tailored pricing strategies for their fans by considering different loyalty levels.

The Sporting Bubble as Gilded Cage

The Sporting Bubble as Gilded Cage

Who Goes to the Game? A Model of Organization-Public Relationships and Team Identification with Attitudes and Behavioral Intentions

This study presents a structured model to investigate whether sports fans’ team identification and organization-public relations (OPR) directly affect their attitudes toward their favorite teams or related behavioral intentions. In addition, it examines which antecedents, such as sports media consumption or duration of being a fan, affect team identification and OPR, and investigates whether gender works as a moderator in the model. An online survey was used and a total of 673 responses of the National Football League (NFL) fans were analyzed. The results of path analyses show that sports media consumption directly affects team identification and OPR, while the duration of being a fan did not significantly influence OPR and had only a small effect on team identification. Moreover, the degree of identification and relational perception of an NFL fan directly affect attitudes toward his or her favorite team. Finally, a person’s attitudes toward the favorite team directly affect his or her purchase intention of team-related products and attendance intention. Among paths in the proposed model, only one path, from attitude to attendance intention, was significantly different between the male and female groups.

“The guys love it when chicks ask for help”: an exploration of female rugby league fans

This article explores the relationship between gender, space and performances of fandom by female match-going fans of the Australian rugby league team the St George Illawarra Dragons. Drawing on a case study that utilised participant observation, semi-structured interviews and a focus group, this article develops a fan typology that details four different types of female fans of rugby league. The findings suggest some female fans were under levels of stricter gatekeeping by male fans depending on their spatial location inside of the stadium. Their inclusion into match-day culture was, therefore, shown to have limits. On the one hand, female match-going fans have agency and choice in the construction and interchange of a fan identity, but on the other, that same identity attests to oppression. We conclude that traditional match-day engagement with rugby league requires conformity to a predominantly masculine ideal. Supplemental data for this article is available online at https://doi.org/10.1080/17430437.2020.1809380.

‘(Simply) the best’, or remembering when tina turner met the winfield cup: Nostalgia and the construction of authenticity in rugby league online spaces

This is an online content analysis using Discourse Tracing to make sense of how rugby league fans talk about changes in the game since the 1980s. Specifically, we are interested in how fans discuss Tina Turner singing ‘(Simply) the Best’ and another song in a famous marketing campaign for Australian rugby league’s professional Winfield Cup. We will use comments below the line on YouTube and in two public fan chat-rooms to explore how the remembering the video constructs a shared myth of Australian and British white working-class masculinity. We argue that while alternative constructions of Australian and British masculinity and national identity are present in this nostalgia, there is also a yearning for a time when hegemonic masculinity intersected with white, working-class nationalist identities and which was reflected in the imagery in the promotional videos.

The Strength of Fan Ties: Emotional Support in Sport Fan Egocentric Networks

Sport management researchers have increasingly noted a relationship between sport spectatorship and well-being, with the line of inquiry predicated on transformative sport service research. In this study, the authors contribute to transformative sport service research by utilizing multilevel egocentric network analysis to examine the consumption networks of National Football League fans over the course of one season. The authors utilized a network theory approach to explore how emotional support is created and embedded within sport fans’ networks of interpersonal ties and social relationships. Through multilevel modeling, the authors highlighted how attributes of both the ego (i.e., focal actor) and alter (i.e., individual with whom ego shares a tie) affect emotional support. Previous studies of transformative sport service research and the link between well-being outcomes and sport spectatorship have implicitly examined only ego-level attributes (i.e., team identification), yet the present work suggests that emotional support depends on the interpersonal ties and network structures within which sport fans are embedded.