The showpiece event of the NFL, the Super Bowl, is often touted as one of the great sports and entertainment events of the year, in part driven by the Super Bowl Halftime Show. This intersection of passion points is often credited with driving international growth in the NFL, which it certainly does, but could fantasy football also be fueling this?
NFL Fantasy football has its roots going back to the 1960s when a group of people connected to the Oakland Raiders competed against each other through a draft of real NFL Players. This foundational underpinning of the game remains today, becoming a multi-billion-dollar industry in itself and a huge revenue driver for the NFL, with millions of fans gathering in pubs, sports bars, and virtually, participating in fantasy football drafts at the start of every NFL season.
Go deeper with GlobalData
But what has propelled fantasy football to the place it is today where it is inherent in the fan experience of those who follow the NFL?
Technology has undoubtedly played a pivotal role allowing fans to play anywhere in the world and stay connected to a community of fans and friends every NFL game week throughout the season. The mobile experience inherently leads to Fantasy being something fans come back to week in and week out.
Broadcast programming designed at least in part to satisfy the consumption preferences of fantasy football players in the form of NFL Redzone has also driven an increase in engagement. NFL Redzone features key moments from all the games across the league. Rather than following your favorite team, NFL fantasy players have a dedicated program that will allow them to follow key moments across the entire league that will impact their fantasy team.
The increase in participation around NFL fantasy has undoubtedly had a positive impact on TV audiences overall and the resulting rights fee for broadcast rights around the world. The current TV package, running until 2033 saw an 80% increase from the prior cycle reflecting the overall popularity of the NFL.
Lastly, the format of NFL fantasy football itself, where players are matched up against other opponents in the league keeps players coming back every week, in contrast to other fantasy games where players have a tendency to set their team and leave it for the entire season. This has resulted in a greater proportion of NFL fans engaging in fantasy football Leagues than other US-centric sports (12.7% NFL fans, 8.5% basketball fans, and 8% baseball fans via GWI Sport).
The Impact on International Audiences
The NFL has recently announced additional regular season games to take place in Ireland and Australia signalling the ongoing commitment to continued growth of the league outside the USA. Next season, the NFL will have seven games played internationally including games in London, Sao Paulo, Berlin, Madrid, and Dublin.
Fantasy football is undoubtedly contributing to the growth of the NFL internationally by increasing interest in teams and players where there is no natural local interest, deepening engagement and making football more accessible to more fans.
Compared to 10 years ago, online conversations around NFL Fantasy Football have grown by 43% as globalization of the sport has picked up pace (Source: Brandwatch).
The Commercial Impact of Fantasy Football
This growth in popularity in fantasy football has seen a broader commercial ecosystem grow around it. The data and analytics elements of the game have parallel interest with betting brands for some fans, enticing an already existing audience onto the platform. Now advertisers are buying inventory within the game itself, including several betting companies, such as Draft Kings and 888sport. Data providers, analysis platforms, and trade and draft generators also benefit from the broader commercial opportunity; by, in some instances, charging fans a subscription price to increase their likelihood of success in their leagues.
Advertising revenue for broadcasters has been positively impacted by the increase in viewership driven by fantasy football. So much so that some brands are creating TV ads specifically related to the Game.
The Future of Fantasy Football
As we look to the future of fantasy football, there is plenty of scope for technology to continue to power the growth of the game for fans. The demand for personalized and bespoke content will only continue to grow for NFL fantasy football players and the brands that want to engage with them. The NFL fantasy audience is 41% more likely than the general population to advocate for brands when they have access to exclusive services.
AI in particular has the capacity to enhance the fan experience by providing customized, real-time stats, predicting player performance, automatically adjusting lineups and proactively suggesting trades and free-agent pickups in a way that is much deeper than existing platforms can do
Additionally, as customized broadcast feeds become a reality, the possibility of fans being able to have bespoke programming or highlights packages reflecting their fantasy teams may become a reality in the near future.
