According to a Nielsen study of football fans*, 51% of 16–34 year olds now use Facebook to consume all types of football content, and COPA90’s recent Modern Fan report highlights the importance of meme culture amongst football fans, with funny videos and memes now overtaking game highlights on social media (60% v 59%). Interviews, GIFs and statistics make up the rest of the top five content forms.
Over on Instagram, we have witnessed a meteoric rise in the popularity of individual players. Facebook’s study claims that 94% of sports fans use the platform to see the personal side of athletes. Ronaldo (158m), Neymar (112m) and Messi (111m) have the greatest number of followers (more than outshining their respective clubs), proving that some players are far bigger than the clubs themselves. Juventus’ Instagram grew by 4.7 million when Ronaldo signed; conversely, Real Madrid lost a million fans over the same period.
