Whitepaper: SportFive - How Sponsors Can Better Understand U.S. Soccer Fandom.
Fan Voices: SPORTFIVE Unveils Study On How Sponsors Can Better Understand U.S. Soccer Fandom
Brands have been told to "get ready" for the world's biggest sporting event. But interested parties should do so right now. A great way for them to start is by exploring SPORTFIVE's latest whitepaper, which delves into how brands and sponsors can better understand the unique nature of U.S. soccer fans and ultimately emerge victorious during this once-in-a-generation spectacle.
130 million people in the United States identify as soccer fans, but they are unlike any other demographic in the sporting world.
To better understand this large group of people, seven unique personas have emerged out of SPORTFIVE’s research. These seven personas exist across a spectrum, with some people’s fandom leaning toward "Sport-First" while others tilt towards "Culture-First." SPORTFIVE has segmented these personas across this spectrum, showing why they're fans and how they interact with the sport.
SPORTFIVE
The Fandom Phenomenon: How consumers, creators, and advertisers benefit from podcast fandom
How do you capture your audience’s attention? You can text them, email them, pay to reach them on social and search, or even fly a blimp over their house—but real influence starts with trust.
There’s no singular source of truth for potential customers, but if there were, it would sound a lot like Wondery. As Amazon’s premier podcast studio and network, Wondery is home to some of the most trusted and influential hosts in the industry, including Dax Shepard, Jason and Travis Kelce, and Keke Palmer.
Shows like Armchair Expert, New Heights, and Baby, This Is Keke Palmer consistently top charts and garner numerous awards recognition, including NAACP Image Awards, GLAAD Awards, the Variety Creative Impact in Podcasting Award, Webbys, Gracies, and The Ambies.
With listenership and advertiser interest continuing to grow across this emerging channel, one must ask: What is it about podcasts that keeps consumers coming back for more? Wondery’s latest research study, The Fandom Phenomenon, sought to uncover just that.
Marketingbrew.com / Wondery, Amazon
Classifying and Characterizing Fandom Activities: A Focus on Superfans’ Posting and Commenting Behaviors in a Digital Fandom Community
As digital fandom communities expand and diversify, user engagement patterns increasingly shape the social and emotional fabric of online platforms. In the era of Industry 4.0, data-driven approaches are transforming how online communities understand and optimize user engagement. In this study, we examine how different forms of activity, specifically posting and commenting, characterize fandom engagement on Weverse, a global fan community platform. By applying a clustering approach to large-scale user data, we identify distinct subsets of heavy users, separating those who focus on creating posts (post-heavy users) from those who concentrate on leaving comments (comment-heavy users). A subsequent linguistic analysis using the Linguistic Inquiry and Word Count (LIWC) tool revealed that post-heavy users typically employ a structured, goal-oriented style with collective pronouns and formal tones, whereas comment-heavy users exhibit more spontaneous, emotionally rich expressions enhanced by personalized fandom-specific slang and extensive emoji use. Building on these findings, we propose design implications such as pinning community-driven content, offering contextual translations for fandom-specific slang, and introducing reaction matrices that address the unique needs of each group. Taken together, our results underscore the value of distinguishing multiple dimensions of engagement in digital fandoms, providing a foundation for more nuanced platform features that can enhance positive user experience, social cohesion, and sustained community growth.
Applied Sciences/ MDPI - Yeoreum Lee, Sangkeun Park
Gatekeeping the Gatekeepers: An Exploratory Study of Transformative Games Fandom & TikTok Algorithms
Within fandoms, gatekeeping practices such as delineating authentic from fake fans filter out certain identities. While the types of fans excluded vary by fandom, mainstream digital games culture–and the hegemonic, masculine groups within it–frequently leverage gatekeeping tactics like harassment to silence or churn others (i.e., women) from participating. While there has been considerable scholarship documenting gatekeeping in online digital games there has been less examination of this occurring within video game fandom. We conducted an exploratory study to investigate gatekeeping in response to TikTok videos about Call of Duty's masculine operator Ghost. We found more comments qualifying as celebratory fun than gatekeeping. We argue that social media spaces by virtue of their recommendation algorithms are productive sites for reimagining games counter to affirmational readings within relatively niche communities.
Sage Journals / Jessica E. Tompkins, Ashley ML Guajardo (née Brown)
From celebrity advocacy to fandom advocacy: Harness the power of participatory fandom culture
On February 4, 1962, internationally renowned actor and comedian Danny Thomas founded the nonprofit St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Utilizing his celebrity status and extensive connections within the entertainment industry, Danny organized fundraising events and enlisted the support of fellow celebrities to raise public awareness and financial resources for the hospital’s mission of treating pediatric cancer and other life-threatening diseases (Stjude.org, 2023). Over time, the hospital has evolved into the world’s leading pediatric cancer research facility and currently ranks as America’s third largest healthcare charity. It has maintained continuous collaboration with more than 200 celebrity partners and supporters (Looktothestars.org, 2023). Danny Thomas’s work with St. Jude stands as one of the earliest and most well-documented instances of highly successful collaborations between a celebrity and a nonprofit in the modern era.
Science Direct / PR Relations Review - Baobao Song, Minhee Choi
Cannes Lions Retrospective: 3 Reasons Why Fandom Can Be a Marketer's Superpower
CANNES, France 2024 —Brands whose marketing strategies overlook fan communities are leaving their most valuable audiences untapped, executives shared at a group chat on Monday at ADWEEK House in Cannes. Michael Sugar, CEO and founder of Sugar23, moderated the panel, which included Alyssa Buetikofer, vice president and CMO of McDonald’s Canada, and Stephanie Fried, the CMO of Fandom. The executives discussed the power of connecting with audiences in fan communities and through online forums surrounding sports, entertainment, music and gaming. All three executives are well-versed in the subject. Sugar, an Oscar-winning producer, has been recently helping brands connect with popular celebrities who inspire fandoms.
AD Week
Fandom and marketers: Here’s what the numbers say
From pop stars to sports, fandoms can be a great benefit to marketers, but not without risks, according to a recent Kearney report.
Marketingdive.com/Kearney
Here’s How Fandom Marketing Can Power Your Global Strategy
Embracing Fan Culture - As brands continue to recognize the power of fandoms, we’re likely to see more campaigns that celebrate fandom creativity, blending branded experiences with the unique passions of these dedicated communities. This evolution in marketing makes fandoms an invaluable asset for brands looking to build meaningful, long-lasting relationships with consumers.
Sociallypowerful.com
Fandom is no longer a niche, as 3-in-5 Aussies consider themselves fans.
In an age where passive impressions are losing their power, with 70% of media investment reportedly wasted on attention that doesn’t last beyond two seconds, Snack Drawer identifies fandom as a potent, underutilised force for brands seeking to build true cultural relevance.
Snack Drawer / Campaign Brief
Different fans express their fandom in different ways - Sports and Entertainment: Key insights on fandom, betting, media, and more..
The ways we spend our free time are changing amidst generational shifts, technological innovation, and more. Read on for a closer look at Ipsos’ exclusive data on sports and entertainment.
IPOS
