The official Facebook page of the World Baseball Softball Confederation was the top sports page on Facebook in terms of year-to-year (%) follower growth from 2015 to 2016, according to the Global Sports Impact Report 2016 which analyzed over 100 major world sporting events, international sports federations, sports leagues and multi-sport games across a series of indicators. The social media index of the GSI report also rated WBSC third in terms of subscriber percentage growth on YouTube from 2015 to 2016.
Factors contributing to the success of WBSC‘s social media campaign included streamlining international baseball and softball content under one WBSC Facebook page following the merger of the International Baseball Federation and International Softball Federation. The worldwide fan and med media interest in WBSC’s 2020 Olympic Baseball and Softball bid was also seen a key factor in driving the record growth, along with the launch of a new global baseball flagship tournament, WBS PREMIER12, in 2015. WBSC also in 2015 began implementing free global live-streaming and highlights for the Baseball World Cup world championships at youtube.com/wbsc, which has generated significant new subscribers/followers and opportunities for exciting and exclusive content sharing across all WBSC social media platforms.
“Baseball and softball are one of the biggest sports on social media, with millions of young and passionate fans following and supporting their favorite players, clubs, leagues and National Teams around the world,” said WBSC President Riccardo Fraccari. “And following Olympic Agenda 2020’s emphasis on youth appeal, WBSC and our stakeholders are committed to harnessing the popularity of baseball and softball among young digital users, fans and athletes to help connect the next generation of youth to the Olympic Movement.”
This story first appeared in the blog, The Sport Intern. The editor is Karl-Heinz Huba of Lorsch, Germany. He can be reached at ISMG@aol.com. The article is reprinted here with permission of Huba.