Female sports fans
In Japan a recent survey found that 60% of men and 40% of women call themselves sports fans.
In one sports league in Japan 80% of the fans at stadiums are women. Can you guess what sport it is?
Recently I watched this game.
In the men’s SV league (volleyball) 80% of fans are women between 20 and 50.
The women’s league also has a higher percentage of female fans compared to other sports.
Why do you think this is?
Handsome players
Haiyu!
ママさんバレー Volleyball is a popular sport for mothers (and sometimes fathers)
Why do women over 30 like playing volleyball (rather than other sports)?
Do you think male and female fans support teams in different ways?
Are male fans or female fans more likely to…
support a player or support a team?
buy merchandise?
watch games in the stadium?
bet on games?
like niche sports?
watch social media content of the teams / players? (e.g. interviews, training clips)
merchandise = goods
niche = “neesh” = minor, not popular
Do you think male and female fans of actors or singers behave in the same way?
How about idol fans?
Answers
Generally the female fans tend to support their favourite player and will support whichever team the player joins.
Men are more likely to support a team even if players change
Women tend to buy a lot of merchandise.
Female fans are more likely to go to the stadium to watch games. They prefer the live experience
Men are slightly more likely to bet on matches (in the US) but the percentage is only slightly higher
Female fans are more likely to be into a niche sport (volleyball, gymnastics, diving, swimming, skiing). At the Olympics these sports always attract more female fans
Women are more likely to watch social media content than men so they can learn about the personality of the players
In general male fans tend to prefer mainstream interests and women are more likely to have niche interests. Some people think that boys want to seem “normal.” Fans with niche interests seem to form closer bonds (partly due to the rejection from he mainstream) which women seem to enjoy more.
Tokyo Bears, established in 2022, attracts the most fans. In the 23/24 season the record high was 8,749 for a normal league game. When I watched them in November of 2024 there were over 10,800 fans watching.
The season runs from October to April (then there are playoffs).
What should the teams do in the off season to keep engaging with their fans?
What’s your advice to help the league (especially the other teams) grow in popularity?
Can foreign players help a league become more popular?
Should there be limits on the number of foreign players in a team?
SNS - they post more videos to Instagram and youtube
fan meet and greets in the off season
Quick Quiz
Q1: In which country was volleyball invented?
Q2: In the world Japan is ranked 5th for volleyball popularity. In which countries is volleyball more popular?
Q3: How tall is the tallest volleyball player in the SV league?
1) Brazil
2) Italy - When Yuki Ishikawa, the Japan national team’s captain, started playing there JTB sold out of packages it offered to watch him play
3) USA - where the sport was invented
4) Russia - In a country with long winters, indoor sports like volleyball can be played all year
5) Japan
A player for Osaka’s Sunbirds is 2.17 metres tall
sources
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/sports/2024/06/04/more-sports/japan-female-volley-super-fans/
https://www.javelinsportsinc.com/posts/which-countries-is-volleyball-most-famous
https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/insights/industry/technology/female-sports-fans-engagement.html