The internet has become European sports fans’ most valuable player, boosting take-up of online video across the region.
New data from the European Interactive Advertising Association (EIAA) shows the web beginning to dominate modern sports coverage, with sports fans accelerating internet trends in the process.
From Spain to Sweden, the proportion of web users making regular visits to sports sites is consistently high: over a third of users in five out of the ten countries surveyed by the EIAA. In Spain, France, Belgium and Norway over 40 per cent of users consume sports coverage online. Across Europe as a whole the percentage of the internet population identifying themselves as sports fans stands at 36 per cent. And there appears to be room for considerable growth in countries such as the traditionally sports-mad UK and Netherlands.
The 39 per cent of sports fans watching online video comfortably exceeds the regional average of 30 per cent, and take-up of video by sports-focused users has increased by a massive 144 per cent since 2006. At the same time as embracing new rich media opportunities online, sports fans seem far more receptive to brand involvement and advertising: 57 per cent rate internet advertising as high on creativity compared to 51 per cent for Europe as a whole.
Adventurous and brand-focused, sports fans also spend ten per cent longer online than the average European, clocking over 13 hours each week. During their peak media consumption period, between 17.30 and 21.00, 68 per cent use the internet whilst 73 per cent watch television. These figures suggest strong overlapping usage. The potential of the internet for providing international, real-time sports coverage is shown by the 37 per cent of sports fans who remain online between 21.00 and 6.00.
“Sports site users are likely to move their sports consumption online, partly due to its ease of use and accessibility, but also its real-time availability and technological capabilities,” says Alison Fennah, executive director of the EIAA. “Ultimately this highlights how marketers can target and benefit from this captive and engaged audience online, especially when the big sporting events demand attention.”
