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EPL Premier League

Fan Engagement is Essential for the Future of Football

Club owners, managers and players are transient compared to its fan-base who will remain loyal for life.

Supporters are the lifeblood

Football club owners, managers, coaches and players are generally transient.  Their tenure at any given football club is relatively short term compared to its fan-base. Fans typically remain loyal for life and be its constant lifeblood.  Fan engagement is essential to keep satisfied supporters.

 

Generational inheritance of support for a club is usually handed down through heritage of family ties.  Often by way of an informal introduction by a relative or close friend, or by simple geographical location.

 

Its a lifelong commitment

Support for your team is usually a lifelong commitment. This can range from the exceptionally committed fanatic who attends every game, home and away, season after season.  Or,  the occasional supporter who might follow the club’s fortunes and daily business from afar, probably online.  They take more than a passing interest in the club’s affairs both on and off the field of play. Regardless of their supporter status, all fans are invested in the club at varying levels of commitment. 

 

Given that fans are the indispensable factor of a football club, it would therefore be prudent practice by all clubs to engage with their supporter base on a regular basis.  This ensures that supporters’ views are considered by their respective club’s board of directors.  This theory is one of the recommendations of the recent of the Fan-led Review of Football in England (2022).  This was endorsed in the corresponding Government white paper.

 

As with any successful business model, listening and acting upon your customers’ requirements and suggestions should be a fundamental principle to ensure customer satisfaction. Customer satisfaction would probably bring even further investment by football fans both emotionally and financially. 

 

Fan Engagement

Fan engagement caters for the supporter’s needs before, during and after each game. This should be a premium end-to-end service. This service might include the following:

 

Pre-match: In the days leading up to the forthcoming game, fans will want updates. These updates would include team selection, injuries status, ticketing, travel arrangements, opposition information and analysis.  Also potential participation in quizzes, score forecasting, polls, projected team line-up, likely goal scorers, etc.

 

In-match: During the game, fans attending the game at the stadium will a high-quality customer experience that caters for all their needs. Ideally, the club will provide all of the services that a supporter will want, and to negate them having to use third party services, be it refreshments, catering, merchandise, entertainment, etc. Fans who are unable to attend the game in person will want minute-by-minute match updates incorporating team line ups, commentary and scores. 

 

Post-match: After each game, fans might want to check on results from other games in their respective league. They may check the latest league table, discuss the game with other like-minded supporters and possibly hold a poll or petition directly relating to the recent game or wider club matters. 

 

Given football’s global reach to an estimated 3.5 billion fans, the responsibility by clubs (and national teams) to ensure a premium fan engagement experience should surely be a priority for all of the industry’s gatekeepers. 

 

Directors’ Box an app for football fan engagement

Directors’ Box, the exciting and excellent new go-to football fan engagement application.  This takes football to the millions of spectators and fans who love the ‘Beautiful Game’ whilst actively supporting football at the grassroots level.

 

The platform offers a one-stop tool for all football fans by facilitating immediate club-specific news, game updates, interactive competitions and much more! 

 

Directors’ Box encourages fans’ opinions and offers supporters the opportunity to create their own polls and petitions relating to their specific club or country.  They can also engage in more generic football matters, to gather and measure supporter opinion.