The Impact of Social Media on Sports Has Been Bigger Than You Might Think
Sports have always been a defining feature of American popular culture. But the growth and expansion of social media over the past decade has taken the role of sports in American culture to an entirely new level.
Fans are now “super fans”
Thanks to the reach of social media, fans have unique insights into their favorite teams, players, and sports. This scale and reach simply was not possible even a few years ago. Every team these days has a panoply of different social media platforms to help fans keep up, and these social feeds are extremely active. In fact, the behind-the-scenes content they provide is often better than the actual game day content they provide.
During the off-season, social media provides an important outlet for these fans to keep up with their favorite players and teams. Take the NFL, for example. As soon as the Super Bowl ended, teams began preparing for the NFL draft. That was followed by constant updates on the voluntary off-season practices and workouts organized by the teams. In between, there are trade updates, free agent signings, injury updates, and rumors and speculation about who’s going to make the team, and who’s soon going to be out of a job.
Players are now brands
Given all the activity happening on social media, players have become brands of their own. At one time, fans identified primarily with their teams. Player loyalty was always secondary to team loyalty. But social media has completely turned this on its head.
By the time many players graduate high school, they already have loyal fan followings. At the college level, new rules about how they can benefit financially from social media have emerged, making it easier than ever to start earning money before they even go professional. Thus, when players are finally drafted by a professional team, they already have a loyal fan base, willing to follow them wherever they go.
A great example here is the case of Shedeur Sanders, the college football quarterback who many thought was a potential Heisman Trophy candidate at the beginning of the 2024 season. Given the social media buzz around his father, Deion Sanders, it was only natural that Sanders ended up becoming a social media sensation as well.
In fact, he became such an online brand that it’s now arguable whether this status actually hurt him going into the 2025 NFL Draft. Teams might have been afraid to take a chance on him, not so much because of his talent, but because they weren’t sure what type of impact he might have on the locker room.
The decentralization of sports media
At one time, large media organizations controlled the flow of news about sports. But the sports media world has been completely decentralized. New social media-fueled media outlets, such as Dave Portnoy’s Barstool Sports, are now just as powerful as legacy brands such as Sports Illustrated.
It’s gotten to the point, in fact, where professional sports leagues are specifically reaching out to these upstart social media organizations, as they attempt to build their fan bases, especially with younger fans. A good example here is Jomboy Media, which recently signed a new partnership deal with MLB baseball in order to bring in new, younger fans to the sport. And it’s no secret why - Jomboy Media is perhaps best known for its irreverent take on sports, and its ability to take any situation and turn it into a viral moment.
Conclusion
The combination of all three of these trends - the creation of super-fans, the transformation of players into brands, and the decentralization of sports media - has completely changed the sports viewing experience. Fan engagement and fan interaction is off-the-charts these days, and the evolution of social media is a key reason why.