Pub Date : 2025-04-08DOI: 10.1177/21674795251330304
Rich G. Johnson, Samer Al-khateeb, Kyran Cupido, Mohammed Madouh, Miles Romney
In March 2022, Lia Thomas of the University of Pennsylvania became the first openly transgender woman to win an NCAA swimming championship. Using Giddens’ structuration theory as a theoretical lens, this analysis employs Latent Dirichlet Allocation to examine how tweets about Thomas and transgender athletes contain toxic discourses based on established sports structures of fairness and sex separation of sports .
{"title":"Cheating or Fair Competition? A Structuration Analysis of Social Media Responses to Lia Thomas’ NCAA Swimming Championship","authors":"Rich G. Johnson, Samer Al-khateeb, Kyran Cupido, Mohammed Madouh, Miles Romney","doi":"10.1177/21674795251330304","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21674795251330304","url":null,"abstract":"In March 2022, Lia Thomas of the University of Pennsylvania became the first openly transgender woman to win an NCAA swimming championship. Using Giddens’ structuration theory as a theoretical lens, this analysis employs Latent Dirichlet Allocation to examine how tweets about Thomas and transgender athletes contain toxic discourses based on established sports structures of <jats:italic>fairness</jats:italic> and <jats:italic>sex separation of sports</jats:italic> .","PeriodicalId":46882,"journal":{"name":"Communication & Sport","volume":"59 20 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143805769","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-04-04DOI: 10.1177/21674795251330485
Kaja Poteko, Sunčica Bartoluci
In recent decades, the Paralympics have evolved into one of the largest and popular elite-level multisport global competitions. However, research has consistently highlighted issues with both – the quantity and quality of its media coverage. While the representation of the Paralympics in the media has been increasingly studied, there has been no study examining the relationship between the Paralympics and the media in Slovenia and Croatia. This study addresses this gap and examines the representation of the Paris 2024 Paralympics in the media in this region. It applies a mixed-methods approach and focuses on the volume of coverage, agenda diversity and the quality of reporting. The study uses a broader definition of sports media, and includes content from the respective Paralympic Committees, exploring a variety of traditional and digital media outlets. The findings show that coverage was limited, with notable differences between public and commercial legacy media. It also lacked agenda diversity, featuring a strong nationalistic focus that contributed to a relatively balanced gender representation. Furthermore, while disability narratives were minimized in competition coverage and athletes were portrayed as inspirational in other related content, the media largely failed to meaningfully address the broader social context of parasport and the inequalities faced by athletes and people with disabilities.
{"title":"Unpacking the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games: A Comparative Analysis of Media Representations in Slovenia and Croatia","authors":"Kaja Poteko, Sunčica Bartoluci","doi":"10.1177/21674795251330485","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21674795251330485","url":null,"abstract":"In recent decades, the Paralympics have evolved into one of the largest and popular elite-level multisport global competitions. However, research has consistently highlighted issues with both – the quantity and quality of its media coverage. While the representation of the Paralympics in the media has been increasingly studied, there has been no study examining the relationship between the Paralympics and the media in Slovenia and Croatia. This study addresses this gap and examines the representation of the Paris 2024 Paralympics in the media in this region. It applies a mixed-methods approach and focuses on the volume of coverage, agenda diversity and the quality of reporting. The study uses a broader definition of sports media, and includes content from the respective Paralympic Committees, exploring a variety of traditional and digital media outlets. The findings show that coverage was limited, with notable differences between public and commercial legacy media. It also lacked agenda diversity, featuring a strong nationalistic focus that contributed to a relatively balanced gender representation. Furthermore, while disability narratives were minimized in competition coverage and athletes were portrayed as inspirational in other related content, the media largely failed to meaningfully address the broader social context of parasport and the inequalities faced by athletes and people with disabilities.","PeriodicalId":46882,"journal":{"name":"Communication & Sport","volume":"76 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143775331","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-04-04DOI: 10.1177/21674795251332123
Dunja Antunovic, Toni Bruce
In this commentary, Antunovic and Bruce comment on the state of feminist sport media scholarship in Communication & Sport in response to Cummins and Hahn’s (2025) 10-year review. The journal has served as a “go to” space for feminist sport media studies scholarship. Hegemonic masculinity prevails as one of the most often referenced frameworks, but the journal’s publications have also engaged with a range of feminist frameworks. Scholars gravitate towards analyses of content (both qualitative and quantitative), which is reflected in feminist sport media scholarship as well. We advocate for a greater use of interviews and focus groups, and note the glaring absence of experimental design. The commentary also addresses the complexities between authors’ institutional affiliations, lived experiences, and contexts of analysis. We ultimately argue for a deeper engagement with theory and a continued commitment to bridging disciplinary boundaries.
{"title":"Feminist Media Scholarship in Communication & Sport : A Response to the 10-Year Review","authors":"Dunja Antunovic, Toni Bruce","doi":"10.1177/21674795251332123","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21674795251332123","url":null,"abstract":"In this commentary, Antunovic and Bruce comment on the state of feminist sport media scholarship in <jats:italic>Communication & Sport</jats:italic> in response to Cummins and Hahn’s (2025) 10-year review. The journal has served as a “go to” space for feminist sport media studies scholarship. Hegemonic masculinity prevails as one of the most often referenced frameworks, but the journal’s publications have also engaged with a range of feminist frameworks. Scholars gravitate towards analyses of content (both qualitative and quantitative), which is reflected in feminist sport media scholarship as well. We advocate for a greater use of interviews and focus groups, and note the glaring absence of experimental design. The commentary also addresses the complexities between authors’ institutional affiliations, lived experiences, and contexts of analysis. We ultimately argue for a deeper engagement with theory and a continued commitment to bridging disciplinary boundaries.","PeriodicalId":46882,"journal":{"name":"Communication & Sport","volume":"41 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143775327","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-04-04DOI: 10.1177/21674795251330491
Henk Erik Meier, Samuel Tickell, Dominik Krüssmann
Digital disruption heavily impacts production, distribution and consumption of sport entertainment. The once symbiotic relationship between sport and linear TV faces far-reaching challenges. This applies also to the specific cooperation between niche sports and public service broadcasters (PSBs), which has evolved in Europe. In exchange for far-reaching mediatization efforts, winter sports gained considerable exposure and audience reach. The current contribution aims to provide evidence for the claim that digital disruption can put the future of winter sport as media sport at risk since the PSBs fail to attract younger audiences. In result, winter sports seem to be subject to a lock-in effect as the cooperation with the PSBs still provides several benefits while no definitive new media model for niche sports has emerged.
{"title":"From Marriage in Heaven to Lock-In? Examining Mediatization of Winter Sports by Public Service Broadcasters","authors":"Henk Erik Meier, Samuel Tickell, Dominik Krüssmann","doi":"10.1177/21674795251330491","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21674795251330491","url":null,"abstract":"Digital disruption heavily impacts production, distribution and consumption of sport entertainment. The once symbiotic relationship between sport and linear TV faces far-reaching challenges. This applies also to the specific cooperation between niche sports and public service broadcasters (PSBs), which has evolved in Europe. In exchange for far-reaching mediatization efforts, winter sports gained considerable exposure and audience reach. The current contribution aims to provide evidence for the claim that digital disruption can put the future of winter sport as media sport at risk since the PSBs fail to attract younger audiences. In result, winter sports seem to be subject to a lock-in effect as the cooperation with the PSBs still provides several benefits while no definitive new media model for niche sports has emerged.","PeriodicalId":46882,"journal":{"name":"Communication & Sport","volume":"37 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2025-04-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143782682","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-26DOI: 10.1177/21674795251330303
Yongjae Kim, Soojin Kim
This study examines fan cognitive and behavioral engagement on social media platforms, with a particular focus on professional team’s Twitter pages. By employing eye-tracking technology, we investigate the influence of content types and topics on visual attention, as well as the impact of team identification on engagement behaviors. Our findings indicate that visually compelling content, especially images of athletes, captures more attention compared to other topics and post types. Furthermore, team identification significantly moderates engagement patterns, with fans exhibiting strong identification showing stronger interaction with team-related content. This research addresses a critical gap in the literature regarding real-time fan engagement, emphasizing the need for sport organizations to tailor their social media strategies according to platform-specific characteristics. The insights derived from this study assist sport teams in optimizing their social media content to foster deeper connections with fans, enhance brand loyalty, and adapt to the rapidly changing digital landscape. Future research should explore emotional engagement and conduct cross-platform comparisons to further enrich our understanding of fan interactions in social media contexts.
{"title":"Exploring Consumer Cognitive and Behavioral Engagement on a Sport Team’s Twitter Pages","authors":"Yongjae Kim, Soojin Kim","doi":"10.1177/21674795251330303","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21674795251330303","url":null,"abstract":"This study examines fan cognitive and behavioral engagement on social media platforms, with a particular focus on professional team’s Twitter pages. By employing eye-tracking technology, we investigate the influence of content types and topics on visual attention, as well as the impact of team identification on engagement behaviors. Our findings indicate that visually compelling content, especially images of athletes, captures more attention compared to other topics and post types. Furthermore, team identification significantly moderates engagement patterns, with fans exhibiting strong identification showing stronger interaction with team-related content. This research addresses a critical gap in the literature regarding real-time fan engagement, emphasizing the need for sport organizations to tailor their social media strategies according to platform-specific characteristics. The insights derived from this study assist sport teams in optimizing their social media content to foster deeper connections with fans, enhance brand loyalty, and adapt to the rapidly changing digital landscape. Future research should explore emotional engagement and conduct cross-platform comparisons to further enrich our understanding of fan interactions in social media contexts.","PeriodicalId":46882,"journal":{"name":"Communication & Sport","volume":"37 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143712997","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-25DOI: 10.1177/21674795251329283
Jacco van Sterkenburg
In this brief essay, I will highlight and elaborate on some of the main reflections put forth by Cummins and Hahn in their recently published systematic review of 10 years of academic work in Communication & Sport (2013–2022). In the first part, I will elaborate on some of the shortcomings the authors identify in the use of theory in the sampled articles. In the second section, I will reflect on methodological approaches in the journal, as they are discussed in the article, in particular the emphasis on content analysis. Cummins & Hahn’s review reveals how audience reception studies or examinations of production processes, or a combination of these, are still less represented in the journal than would ideally be the case. The essay closes with some concluding remarks summarizing and extending on some of the main challenges and ways forward as suggested by the authors.
{"title":"Theory-Building and Multi-Level Analysis: Further Broadening the Horizon of Communication & Sport","authors":"Jacco van Sterkenburg","doi":"10.1177/21674795251329283","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21674795251329283","url":null,"abstract":"In this brief essay, I will highlight and elaborate on some of the main reflections put forth by Cummins and Hahn in their recently published systematic review of 10 years of academic work in <jats:italic>Communication & Sport</jats:italic> (2013–2022). In the first part, I will elaborate on some of the shortcomings the authors identify in the use of theory in the sampled articles. In the second section, I will reflect on methodological approaches in the journal, as they are discussed in the article, in particular the emphasis on content analysis. Cummins & Hahn’s review reveals how audience reception studies or examinations of production processes, or a combination of these, are still less represented in the journal than would ideally be the case. The essay closes with some concluding remarks summarizing and extending on some of the main challenges and ways forward as suggested by the authors.","PeriodicalId":46882,"journal":{"name":"Communication & Sport","volume":"57 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143702746","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-24DOI: 10.1177/21674795251329169
Tang Tang
In response to Cummins & Hahn’s (2025) meta-analysis of the first 10 vol of Communication & Sport, this article advocates for greater methodology breadth in communication and sport research. It emphasizes the need to incorporate diverse data sources, experimental and longitudinal designs, and technology-enabled research methods. The article calls for increased methodological innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration, and support for publishing research that expands methodological boundaries, aiming to spark scholarly dialogue and strengthen our research community.
{"title":"Embrace Methodological Breadth in Communication and Sport Research – A Response to Cummins and Hahn","authors":"Tang Tang","doi":"10.1177/21674795251329169","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21674795251329169","url":null,"abstract":"In response to Cummins & Hahn’s (2025) meta-analysis of the first 10 vol of <jats:italic>Communication & Sport,</jats:italic> this article advocates for greater methodology breadth in communication and sport research. It emphasizes the need to incorporate diverse data sources, experimental and longitudinal designs, and technology-enabled research methods. The article calls for increased methodological innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration, and support for publishing research that expands methodological boundaries, aiming to spark scholarly dialogue and strengthen our research community.","PeriodicalId":46882,"journal":{"name":"Communication & Sport","volume":"25 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143677512","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-22DOI: 10.1177/21674795251327958
Adam Gemar, Rachel Allison, Stacey Pope
This article examines public attitudes towards the media coverage of women’s sport in a context of recent growth but also continued inequality in both quantity and quality of coverage. Drawing from literature on the role of gender ideology in underpinning the unequal media treatment of women’s sport, we focus on ‘gender essentialist’ ideology as a predictor of attitudes. We draw on 2023 survey data from a national sample of U.S. adults ( N = 2032), with results showing that just under a third of respondents feel the amount of media coverage for women’s sport is ‘about right,’ while 25.6% feel it is ‘too much’ and 42.5% feel it is ‘too little.’ Gender essentialist views of women’s sport as lower quality and less entertaining than men’s sport are associated with the belief that women’s sport receives adequate or too much media coverage. Respondents with negative evaluations of the quality and entertainment value of women’s sports attribute increased media attention to social and political pressures rather than genuine demand and interest. Counterintuitively, however, we find that perceptions of women’s sports as higher quality or more entertaining than men’s sports are associated with the belief that women’s sports receive ‘far too much’ media coverage.
{"title":"Gender Essentialism and U.S. Attitudes Towards the Media Coverage of Women’s Sport","authors":"Adam Gemar, Rachel Allison, Stacey Pope","doi":"10.1177/21674795251327958","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21674795251327958","url":null,"abstract":"This article examines public attitudes towards the media coverage of women’s sport in a context of recent growth but also continued inequality in both quantity and quality of coverage. Drawing from literature on the role of gender ideology in underpinning the unequal media treatment of women’s sport, we focus on ‘gender essentialist’ ideology as a predictor of attitudes. We draw on 2023 survey data from a national sample of U.S. adults ( <jats:italic>N</jats:italic> = 2032), with results showing that just under a third of respondents feel the amount of media coverage for women’s sport is ‘about right,’ while 25.6% feel it is ‘too much’ and 42.5% feel it is ‘too little.’ Gender essentialist views of women’s sport as lower quality and less entertaining than men’s sport are associated with the belief that women’s sport receives adequate or too much media coverage. Respondents with negative evaluations of the quality and entertainment value of women’s sports attribute increased media attention to social and political pressures rather than genuine demand and interest. Counterintuitively, however, we find that perceptions of women’s sports as higher quality or more entertaining than men’s sports are associated with the belief that women’s sports receive ‘far too much’ media coverage.","PeriodicalId":46882,"journal":{"name":"Communication & Sport","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143672485","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-21DOI: 10.1177/21674795251326102
Bomin Paek, Minkyo Lee, Glenna L. Read, Hongwei Yang
The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of media type (2D vs. VR) and signage location (center vs. periphery) on the cognitive processing of signage advertising during sporting events. The rapid growth of the virtual reality (VR) sports market has led to widespread integration of sports content into virtual reality services. Despite this, academic exploration of such services remains in its early stages. Using the framework of the dynamic human-centered communication systems theory (DHCCST), this research examines the effects of media type (2D vs. VR) and signage advertising location (center vs. periphery) on cognitive processing of advertising during sporting events. In an experiment, participants viewed a sports game in either 2D or VR format. Real-time biometric measures assessed attentional resources and visual attention, while memory tests evaluated brand memory performance. VR, compared to 2-D, sports viewing trended toward eliciting greater cognitive resource allocation during the periods when signage advertising was presented during the game but significantly decreased visual attention and impaired brand memory for ads. Further, advertising placed centrally received better visual attention and facilitated brand memory compared to advertising in the periphery, regardless of media type. The interaction effect between media type and signage location on attentional outcomes was minimal. Results are discussed in light of the DHCCST and to offer practical insights for designing content to enhance sponsor effectiveness in VR sports programming.
本研究的目的是研究媒体类型（2D vs VR）和标牌位置（中心vs外围）对体育赛事中标牌广告认知加工的影响。虚拟现实（VR）体育市场的快速增长导致体育内容广泛融入虚拟现实服务。尽管如此，对此类服务的学术探索仍处于早期阶段。本研究利用动态以人为中心的传播系统理论（DHCCST）的框架，考察了媒体类型（2D vs VR）和标牌广告位置（中心vs外围）对体育赛事中广告认知加工的影响。在一项实验中，参与者观看了2D或VR格式的体育游戏。实时生物测量评估注意力资源和视觉注意力，而记忆测试评估品牌记忆表现。与2d相比，VR在比赛期间呈现标牌广告期间，体育观看倾向于引发更大的认知资源分配，但显著降低了广告的视觉注意力，损害了广告的品牌记忆。此外，无论媒体类型如何，与外围广告相比，放置在中心的广告获得了更好的视觉注意力，并促进了品牌记忆。媒介类型和标识位置之间的交互作用对注意结果的影响最小。根据DHCCST对结果进行讨论，并为设计内容提供实用见解，以提高赞助商在VR体育节目中的有效性。
{"title":"Dynamic Information Processing of Signage Advertising Embedded in VR-Mediated Sports Through Real-Time Eye-Tracking and Biometric Measures","authors":"Bomin Paek, Minkyo Lee, Glenna L. Read, Hongwei Yang","doi":"10.1177/21674795251326102","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21674795251326102","url":null,"abstract":"The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of media type (2D vs. VR) and signage location (center vs. periphery) on the cognitive processing of signage advertising during sporting events. The rapid growth of the virtual reality (VR) sports market has led to widespread integration of sports content into virtual reality services. Despite this, academic exploration of such services remains in its early stages. Using the framework of the dynamic human-centered communication systems theory (DHCCST), this research examines the effects of media type (2D vs. VR) and signage advertising location (center vs. periphery) on cognitive processing of advertising during sporting events. In an experiment, participants viewed a sports game in either 2D or VR format. Real-time biometric measures assessed attentional resources and visual attention, while memory tests evaluated brand memory performance. VR, compared to 2-D, sports viewing trended toward eliciting greater cognitive resource allocation during the periods when signage advertising was presented during the game but significantly decreased visual attention and impaired brand memory for ads. Further, advertising placed centrally received better visual attention and facilitated brand memory compared to advertising in the periphery, regardless of media type. The interaction effect between media type and signage location on attentional outcomes was minimal. Results are discussed in light of the DHCCST and to offer practical insights for designing content to enhance sponsor effectiveness in VR sports programming.","PeriodicalId":46882,"journal":{"name":"Communication & Sport","volume":"183 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143672520","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-03-21DOI: 10.1177/21674795251327308
Tom Carmichael, Natalia Vila-Lopez
This paper aims to investigate three pillars of social media sports marketing engagement (quantitatively and qualitatively): (i) engagement with a sports league (event), (ii) engagement with the celebrity athletes, and (iii) engagement with the sponsoring brands. To achieve these three objectives, several posts on Instagram were monitored: (i) 145 posts from the surf sports league to compare gender and 57 to compare country of origin (ii) 737 posts from 13 famous athletes competing in the league (407 male and 300 female) (iii) and 763 posts containing information of 32 sponsoring brands. The Instrack, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Azure ML and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) tests were done. The results indicate factors such as gender and country of origin of the athlete posted significantly affect engagement with the World Surf League Instagram page (quantitatively and qualitatively). Additionally, gender, country of origin, professional experience, and attractiveness of the athletes affect the personal engagement of their own Instagram pages (quantitatively and qualitatively). Thirdly, the brand sponsoring the post also affects the level of engagement (quantitatively and qualitatively). A holistic view of the event, the athletes competing, and the sponsoring brands further contributes through new literature.
{"title":"Online Engagement in the Sports Industry: Leagues, Athletes, and Sponsoring Brands","authors":"Tom Carmichael, Natalia Vila-Lopez","doi":"10.1177/21674795251327308","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/21674795251327308","url":null,"abstract":"This paper aims to investigate three pillars of social media sports marketing engagement (quantitatively and qualitatively): (i) engagement with a sports league (event), (ii) engagement with the celebrity athletes, and (iii) engagement with the sponsoring brands. To achieve these three objectives, several posts on Instagram were monitored: (i) 145 posts from the surf sports league to compare gender and 57 to compare country of origin (ii) 737 posts from 13 famous athletes competing in the league (407 male and 300 female) (iii) and 763 posts containing information of 32 sponsoring brands. The Instrack, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Azure ML and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA) tests were done. The results indicate factors such as gender and country of origin of the athlete posted significantly affect engagement with the World Surf League Instagram page (quantitatively and qualitatively). Additionally, gender, country of origin, professional experience, and attractiveness of the athletes affect the personal engagement of their own Instagram pages (quantitatively and qualitatively). Thirdly, the brand sponsoring the post also affects the level of engagement (quantitatively and qualitatively). A holistic view of the event, the athletes competing, and the sponsoring brands further contributes through new literature.","PeriodicalId":46882,"journal":{"name":"Communication & Sport","volume":"20 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.7,"publicationDate":"2025-03-21","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143672523","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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