Tech and media company Morning Consult recently released the findings from a survey that highlight the appeal of the Premier League among U.S. fans. Included their survey were questions comparing PL fandom against the fandom of other European leagues, as well as PL demographics against the demographics of the traditional U.S. Big Four leagues. A few of the interesting discussion points are below, but we strongly encourage you to read their full recap of American Premier League fandom.
American fans prefer the Premier League
Morning Consult found that over 50 percent of avid soccer fans listed the Premier League as their favorite European-based league – more than double the response for second place La Liga. Insert whatever soccer cliche you want here, but American Premier League fandom is certainly top the European table.
Premier League fandom is largely new
Only 19 percent of Morning Consult survey respondents began following their team more than ten years ago. This shouldn’t come as a surprise. The ability for the American casual viewers to easily watch the league week in and week out has really only been a reality for a handful of years. Thanks to NBC’s big investment and commitment to a great on-air product, casual and hardcore fans alike have a much easier time finding and watching the league.
Demographics tell an interesting story
If the Premier League were to look at an American league included in Morning Consult survey for inspiration and potential market similarities, one of the first considerations should be the NBA. The two leagues share a lot in common, most notably that their audiences are young, diverse, and live in urban and suburban communities. 54 percent of NBA fans and 45 percent of PL fans are Millennials or younger. 40 percent of PL fans and a whopping 64 percent of NBA fans are non-White. 84 percent of PL fans and 83 percent of NBA fans are from urban and suburban communities. Compare the numbers from the NFL and MLB for those categories and there’s a stark difference.
So what does this mean? Both leagues should continue to look for opportunities to cross-promote their respective leagues (like the example below) and take advantage of very similar audiences.
5 games in 5 days. @Larrydn22 had himself a week.
☑️ Man City v Spurs
☑️ Everton v Man United
☑️ Chelsea v Burnley
☑️ Spurs v Brighton
☑️ Man United v Man City— Premier League USA (@PLinUSA) April 29, 2019
Categories: Premier League, Research