For many sports fans, following their favorite athletes on TV, social media, and even at games in person just isn’t enough. The majority of fans also consume sports audio content via podcasts or radio, according to a new report from SiriusXM Media, GroupM, and Edison Research.
Those listeners present an opportunity for advertisers that could be going untapped, according to Melissa Paris, VP of sales research at SiriusXM.
“Sports audio listeners, we saw from this study in general, are more agreeable to advertising, they’re more likely to take action on advertising, and just as a demographic, they’re an attractive audience,” Paris told Marketing Brew. “There’s a lot of different ways to engage.”
Listen up: According to the report, 64% of self-identified sports fans said they “frequently” or “occasionally” listen to sports content. A larger majority (89%) said they watch sports content that often.
- Sports podcasts are the leading audio format among Gen Z fans, 42% of whom said they “frequently” or “occasionally” listened to one in the past year, per the report.
- Millennials listened to sports podcasts just as often as they listened to AM/FM sports radio over the air.
- Older generations—Gen X and baby boomers—listened to AM/FM sports radio over the air or via online streams more often than podcasts.
The audience for sports audio is more heavily composed of self-identified sports superfans than the audience for sports video, which skews more toward average sports fans, the research shows. While the audiences may differ, the channels pair well to “expand audience reach in a way that’s complementary,” Jen Soch, executive director of channel solutions at GroupM US, said.
Open minds: Sports audio listeners, and especially sports podcast listeners, spend more on average per year on sports merchandise than sports video viewers, according to the report. They’re also more likely to say they enjoy hearing or seeing their favorite athletes in ads.
- About two in three (67%) sports audio listeners said they trust the products and services used by the athletes they like.
- A similar share (64%) said they trust the products and services used by sports announcers or commentators they like.
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“Audio is a critical component of holistic media investments, and it needs to be a top consideration for brands looking to extend their reach and overall presence in sports,” Soch said.
Gap in the market: About one-third (32%) of sports fans said they currently follow a women’s team or a woman athlete, a share that skews higher among Gen Z, millennial, Latino, Black, and Asian fans, according to the report. That’s “solid consumer interest” in women’s sports, Martin Blich, executive director of sports and live investment at GroupM US, said.
There are also signs that number could be increasing, per the report, with 29% of fans saying they follow women’s sports or women athletes more now than they did five years ago, including 32% of men surveyed.
There’s a “content gap” in audio, though, Paris said. There are some sports podcasts hosted by women, like soccer stars Christen Press and Tobin Heath’s The Re—Cap Show, but the top sports podcasts are overwhelmingly hosted by men.
It’s official: Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce are the “best” sports couple, according to the report, with 19% of sports fans selecting them from a list that also included Victoria Beckham and David Beckham, the second-most popular sports couple with 15% of the vote, and Joe DiMaggio and Marilyn Monroe, who came in third with 14%. Was there ever any doubt?