CHANGING THE PLAYING FIELD

             The biggest saga playing out in the sports world this week has been that of the Missouri Tigers' former defensive end, and future NFL draft pick Michael Sam openly announcing to the world he’s gay.  The headlines have covered most of the drama from Sam “conquering the final frontier” and “rewriting the script for young athletes” to the opposition labeling the young star as having “stock dropping fast” while NFL executives anonymously cite “distractions and uncomfortable teammates” as potential problems for Sam.  The saga has made superstars out of some remarks like sportscaster Dale Hansen, whose on the air speech condemning the NFL has gone viral (http://bit.ly/1fZ3Lfg) while circulating others like The Daily Show’s Jon Stewart rant on the hypocrisy of an organization that accepts criminal behaviors, but admonishes someone’s sexual orientation (http://bit.ly/1bmjp7p).  All of this while generating a lot of water cooler talk about workplace environments and the tolerance of discrimination as reported from the players’ themselves in Andrea Kramer’s piece inside the NFL's locker room (http://on.nfl.com/1gEgPaC).  This in turn only generating more popular support for stories like that of rookie Jonathan Martin who felt so uncomfortable playing for the NFL he left the dream job entirely.

http://i.imgur.com/gDpLyZT.jpg

            While each storyline lends itself to big picture discussions on cultural dynamics, human rights, and workplace discrimination issues, what I found most compelling were actually a few lines Michael Sam was quoted as saying to The New York Times, “I just want to make sure I could tell my story the way I want to tell it…..No one else should tell my story but me” (http://nyti.ms/1fWMANA). Going on to say that he didn’t want to be known just as the first gay athlete, but rather for his good character.  For all of the publicity surrounding the event and the talk of paving new civil rights lines, a young 20-something Sam has grasped what many before him in sports haven’t: owning one's brand.   

            Sam is likely to have grown up watching the epic falls from grace of billion dollar athletes like Tiger Woods and Lance Armstrong.  These top level players found themselves sitting in countless interview chairs and making publicity rounds not because they wanted to, but rather to apologize and to plead to their fans for forgiveness, forgiveness for hiding behind a false identity, for a history of lying and bad behavior, for their poor sense of entitlement, for presenting an image to the public that they themselves never once lived by.  To many, these household names have made a mockery of their sports and their personal brands and as a result of their bad behavior have watched not only sponsors drop out, but left many lifelong fans feeling disgraced by their once biggest idols.  

Source: http://bit.ly/1lF4qWG

Michael Sam in contrast is comfortable with the man he is and not afraid of any repercussions that might erupt from projecting his inner self outward, even if it might mean less money or having to work harder to prove his skills to earn a coveted NFL spot.   While his sport may be one of team over individual as opposed to that of golf and cycling, he has shown wisdom beyond his years in taking the driver seat at the onset of his career.  He controlled the message and the medium, and understood that he could either be sitting in that chair after a tabloid rag made a few bucks off of photographing him one night in an embrace with another man, or he could sit there as an athlete at the top of his game, with a team in the Midwestern heartland that respected and stood behind him knowing full well his sexual identity all season-long, and who’s excited about his future and the role he can have in inspiring other young people.   

Any NFL team should be proud to welcome him into their locker room, forget the publicity, forget the team dynamics, forget the history making, if the NFL needs a reason to push aside the interest of the press and take stock in the skills of this young athlete let it be because he has truly proven himself as a professional as much on the field as he is off.  Will it be complicated? Yes.  Will it be new territory to navigate? Yes.  Will the press be knocking at the door a lot initially? Yes.  But eventually the storyline will fade, the season will get underway, reporters will run out of things to spew on the subject of being gay in the NFL, and a lucky NFL team will not only have one of the most talented defensive linemen in the game, but also a leader, a role model, and a guy whose jersey is going to sell well to kids around the country.  Given the reputation of the NFL for being known more as the “National Felons League” than the “National Football League” a man with good character, a lot of heart, and a positive self-image entering its doors, who can not only play football, but play it extremely well, well that my friends is something to write home about.

2013: A LOOK BACK IN SPORTS - Part 1

Nielsen has released it's data on sports fans in 2013 and needless to say it was a great year for sports programming, sports content, and an exciting season for just about every sports fan.  You can read the full summarized report here: www.nielsen.com/us/en/reports/2014/year-in-the-sports-media-report-2013.html: I've read through it and here's some of the most interesting facts from the past year:

SPORTS CONSUMPTION 

·      232% increase in hours of national sports programming in the past 10 years, over 33 billion hours of national coverage in 2013, consumed by 255 million people

·      Average fan spends 90 minutes browsing a sports website, 30 minutes watching video on a sports website, and 75 minutes accessing sports content on a phone each month

·      Sports make up only 1.2% of TV programming, yet make up nearly half of all tweets about TV.

·      African Americans spent the most time accessing sports and sports video on the web, while Hispanics were the most likely to view the same content on their mobile devices 

NFL BREAKDOWN:

http://bit.ly/1jBfd6l

·      All five broadcast networks carrying NFL games saw an increase in viewership this season. Four of the six highest rated Sunday Night Football telecasts featured the Broncos.

·      More than 10 million Americans used fantasy football apps, spending 2 hours and 15 minutes on average a month there, with Yahoo leading the way.

·      NFL fans are 41% more likely to have consumed a craft beer in the past month, and Bud Light is the NFL’s top advertiser. 

·      The average fan is likely to be a white male, aged 55 and older who makes $40-$75K annually. 

·      The Green Bay Packers and New Orleans Saints topped the pack of most-devoted fan bases with over 80% of their population having watched, attended, or listened to the team in the past 12 months. 

 NBA BREAKDOWN:

http://bit.ly/1ja1xf9

·      NBA fans are younger and more social than any other sport.

·       Viewers sent 27 million Tweets during the NBA Finals alone in 2013, and five of the top ten most tweeted about sporting events are NBA games (only the SuperBowl drew more). 

·      NBA fans are 66% more likely to have used Twitter in the past month, and Sprint Wireless is the NBA’s top advertiser.

·      The average fan is likely to be a black male, aged 18-34 who makes $40-$75K a year.

·      The Oklahoma City Thunder and San Antonio Spurs topped the pack of most devoted fan bases with 60% or more of the population having watched, attended, or listened to the team in the past 12 months.

 MLB BREAKDOWN:

http://bit.ly/1g1cZaI

·      MLB fans are older and wealthier than any other sport.  The 55 and up demographic makes up half of the audience, and those making over $100K a year drive 21% of the market.

·      MLB games saw in increase in TV viewership this year, but also go hand in hand with radio listeners, seeing out of the park gains during the World Series in both the St. Louis (65% gain) and Boston (211% gain) metro radio markets.

·      MLB fans are 37% more likely to have taken 10 or more domestic round-trip flights in the past year, and the top MLB advertiser is Verizon Wireless.

·      The average fan is likely to be a white male, aged 55 and older who makes $40-$75K annually. 

·      While all of the top five most devoted fan bases including Milwaukee, Boston, Detroit, and Cincinnati had 65% or higher of the population having watched, attended, or listened to the team in the past 12 months, the St. Louis Cardinals pulled to the top of the pack with 76% of the population.

 NHL BREAKDOWN:

 

my friend's baby

·      Despite a lockout and shortened season, NHL viewership continued to grow in 2013 by almost 20%, including a series-clinching game six of the Stanley Cup Finals bringing in 8.2 million viewers.  The Finals across the board were the most watched on record, averaging 5.8 million viewers.

·      The audience is also growing more affluent with over half of the population making over $75K a year. 

·      NHL fans are 34% more likely to own a tablet, and the top NHL advertiser is Discover Credit Card.  

·      The average fan is most likely to be a white male aged 35-54 making $100K a year or more. 

·      Three of the top five most devoted fan bases including Boston, Detroit, and Buffalo had over 40% of their population watching, attending, or listening to the team in the past 12 months, but only the Pittsburgh Penguin fan base cracked the halfway mark, coming in at 54% of the population.

The Top 5 Olympic Athletes Winning at Social Media

Photo: thenickpantsshow.tumblr.com/

With Olympic fever well underway and all eyes on Sochi this week, social media has been abuzz both with excited fans and a wealth of new Russian experiences.  According to topsy.com’s Twitter data, in the last 7 days, the hashtag #sochi2014 has brought in over 2.2 million tweets and that number is rising by the second.  So I thought it would be interesting to look at the athletes who are not just medaling on the podium, but in the world of social media as well, building their fan bases and personal brands at a time when the world is most captivated in their sports.  

1.     Shaun White – The two-time gold medal reigning champion snowboarder failed to bring home the grand prize this time around, but for a man who has crafted a brand so large he has over 1.3 million Twitter followers and become the poster boy for his sport, even on a night in which he’d wipeout and place 4^th overall, his event would rake in an average of 23.6 million viewers, up 16% from the 2010 Games (Los Angeles Times).   His name alone has generated over 200,000 tweets in the past week (topsy.com) and out of all the athletes that came into the Olympics with strong followers the Flying Tomato is my favorite, as everyone seems to have a comment or opinion to make about him and his unique style.  He might also be the only athlete who can pull out of an event (slopestyle) and actually increase his Twitter followers (another 10,000). While his Twitter has gone a little dark since the Olympic loss, he was nice enough to share a video before his event even took place, thanking his fans for supporting him along the way, as can be seen on his page at: twitter.com/shaun_white

2.     Johnny Quinn – Johnny’s headline making in the past week has been all about his athletic skill, but more often than not he's showing off those skills in his Russian hotel rather than his bobsled.  The so called #sochiproblems have blanketed the web with over 300,000 tweets (topsy.com) addressing everything from contaminated water to improvised bathrooms over the past two weeks, and Johnny Quinn took to his Twitter account to drum up a unique situation.  He tweeted out a picture showing the world the remnants of a bathroom door he had punched his way through after been locked inside, and cited his bobsled training as providing him with the tools to break free. His tweet went viral with over 30,000 re-tweets and appearances on all the major news outlets.  Two days later he’d find himself trapped again, only this time inside an elevator.  You can join his 25,000 new fans and follow the charismatic star thru his daring escapes, and maybe a little actual bobsledding at: twitter.com/JohnnyQuinnUSA

3.     Ashley Wagner – If there were crowns for the queen of memes, the summer Olympics’ McKayla Maroney might have to step down for the newest addition to the throne, winter’s ice queen Ashley Wagner.  Wagner’s shocked/angry/annoyed facial expression after receiving a lower score than expected during a figure skating competition set off like fire around social media with her expression added to a variety of memes on every subject matter.  Over 20,000 tweets later, Ashley’s twitter following at: twitter.com/AshWagner2010 has grown to over 55,000, and she has handed her new-found fame off the rink like the pro she is on it.  Her presence on Twitter is filled with a lighthearted humor surrounding the judging and finding fun in the unimpressed facial expression and the parodies surrounding it, despite a serious time in her skating career.  More active on Instagram, Ashley has developed a social media presence with a youthful energy behind the scenes at the Games, and gives audiences a chance to connect with the young star before tuning into to see how she’ll do, and perhaps more interestingly, how she’ll react, in the next competition.

4.     Julia Mancuso – With Lindsay Vonn out of the winter Olympics this year, Julia Mancuso has been looking to fill in as America’s sweetheart.  Julia has been one of the most active Olympic Twitter users, sharing constant tweets both during her travels to Sochi and during her training regime, but also finding the time to comment on the successes of other athletes.  Rather than letting her channels go dark after failing to take home a medal Wednesday in the downhill competition, Julia actually took to the web offering glimpses into how she deals with defeat.  Balancing her social media channels of heavily used Instagram and Twitter, both topping off at well over 55,000 followers, with an even mix of personal anecdotes and sponsorship/interview promotions, Julia has what it takes to develop a personal brand and household name that lives on long after the Games have left Sochi.  Find the rest of her views from the Olympic deck at: twitter.com/JuliaMancuso

5.     Bob Costas – So he’s not technically an Olympic athlete, but sports personality Bob Costas has become the story of the Olympics without having ever competed.  The star broadcaster has hosted 157 consecutive Olympic prime-time broadcasts going all the way back to 1988, that is until this week when a terrible pink eye infection forced him out of his coveted seat.  Every Olympics has a story and, going into this one, many were focused on the threat of terrorism, the gay right protests, or the poor accommodations, but it seems one legendary broadcaster’s deteriorating eyes have taken over.  Costas tried to go into work, switching to studious glasses, and even taking a drink on air to ease the problem, but eventually had to vacate his seat until his health improved, despite his determined work ethic.  Costas doesn’t even have a Twitter, but with 131,000 tweets about him this week alone, his career is in the spotlight, and so are those eyes.  And if you really need an update, his eyes do have their own Twitter following at: twitter.com/BobCostasEyes