The football season may be returning but not as we know it. With stadiums empty, roars of the crowds absent and many watching from afar, new research from Spotify* reveals that fans are finding alternative ways to recreate the spirit of the big game at home.
With the new season and competitions kicking off behind closed doors this Summer, it’s perhaps no surprise that 74% of football fans agree they miss hearing the sounds of the live crowds singing along to team songs and chants from inside the stadium, and even more so (80%) miss the live cheering sounds as their team scores a goal.
But they are finding new ways to get that football feeling, with the research revealing that a third (34%) of football fans have been replicating the match-day experience at home in a number of ways, including listening to football songs and anthems to recreate the feeling of being in the stadium (11%), playing football anthems when their team has scored or won a match (9%), and tuning into football podcasts before, during or after matches (12%). Furthermore, 38% of people stated that even when football stadiums reopen and match days return to a new normal, they will rely on music and podcasts more to help them feel connected to the match day spirit.
As fans turn to Spotify to get their football sounds fix, the streaming platform has seen more than 20,000 user generated playlists with the term ‘football’ in the title added during the past two months alone**.
Don’t just take it from us – there’s some serious science behind the sound of sport and the role it plays for the viewer. A recent study from Texas Tech University found that when fans watch sports on TV, they take their social cues and much of their enjoyment from the crowd in the stadium – with the research finding games with added stadium crowd noise were “significantly more exciting and immersive” than without.
Professor Glenn Cummins of Texas Tech, who conducted the research, said: “Team sports such as football are an important way for people to feel united. Our findings show the power sound can play in creating a more exciting and immersive experience for sporting spectators. While live sports are put on pause, there are plenty of different ways that fans can use other audio to recreate the match-day magic.
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“Whether through top chants, fan favourite songs or longer-form podcasts about football, audio content helps bring that shared experience to life again for fans to keep excitement high before they can get back into the stadiums once more.”
Some of the most famous football and sports anthems across the world have also seen a surge in listening in recent months, including Real Madrid’s ‘Hala Madrid… y nada mas’ – Red’One which has seen a 64% increase** in streams amongst fans in Spain. Additional popular football amongst listeners on Spotify include the iconic track ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ by Gerry & The Pacemakers as well Liverpool FC’s crowd favourite chant ‘Allez Allez Allez’ by Jamie Webster.
Download the Spotify app via the Android or iOS app store or by heading to www.spotify.com – to embed Spotify into a website – right click on any playlist, go to ‘share’ and copy embed code.
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