With exactly 98 days until the Women’s World Cup kicks off, a very important study details how big companies are seizing the opportunity to reach their most engaged fans.
that report Women’s Football Fans of the Year 2023, developed by Footballco and Indivisa, the results are based on a survey of 2,291 male and female football fans from 10 countries. They are: United Kingdom, Germany, Netherlands, United States, Brazil, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Egypt.
He found that 58 percent of Gen Z female football fans fall into the category of “superfans” who watch as many games as possible.
The study also detailed that 12 percent of gen-z fans prefer women’s football to men’s football.
Already 78% of those who follow men’s football consider themselves a fan or Super fans, while women’s football is 52%. The gap is attributed to engagement time. The study noted that 37 percent of those following women’s football had done so for six years or more, compared to 72 percent of those following men’s football over the same period.
“What we’re seeing here is the importance of connecting with women’s football fans. Brands can, and in some cases have recognized, that working with female gamers cannot be limited to product endorsements. Brands and the content around them must deliver A story that fans can relate to and, if possible, connect to a cause,” said Morgan Brennan, head of Indivisa, Footballco’s women’s soccer media brand.
Opportunities to communicate with fans
The Women’s World Cup presents a bigger opportunity for brands targeting Gen Z, as 58% of female fans aged 18-24 are female fans or Super fans. When female fans are over 45, that number drops to 37%.
In terms of format-related content, Footballco states that the favorites are live matches, match summaries and latest news. When broken down by age, 18- to 24-year-olds showed a preference for memes, live games, and inspirational stories, respectively.
In terms of consumption, female fans are more likely to consume through YouTube (48%), Facebook (42%) and Instagram (42%). Between the ages of 18 and 24, they turn to Instagram (55%), TikTok (51%) and YouTube (49%).
Other platforms mentioned included Twitter (35%), WhatsApp (31%), Snapchat (29%), Twitch (27%), Pinterest (27%) and Telegram (26%).
“For younger female football fans, it’s clear that they want what and want differently than older fans. This creates a huge opportunity for brands to activate outside the game window and away from traditional broadcast media .”