Introduction
People who passionately follow a team, a sportsperson, or a given sport are referred to as fans. They participate in repetitive and supportive individual acts that align with a team or a sport. This paper will analyze the major contributing factors that make people passionate about their teams, which include entertainment, perceived value, and fan identification. Theories of motivation and satisfaction for sports fans can offer an excellent insight into a sports fan’s behavior and help understand how they build a great connection with their teams.
Main body
The first factor is the involvement in the opportunities and entertainment values Oakley (2019) states that most teams offer some services to their fans to enhance fan involvement, including facility aesthetics. For example, the physical surroundings of a stadium can influence a fan’s desire to stay or return to it. Perceived value is another significant motivating factor. Oakley (2019) suggested that perceived values from different service areas, including facility accessibility, attractiveness, entertainment, and parking, can lead to sport spectator motivators. Thus, fans are so passionate about their teams because of the services and values that they receive from them.
Another motivating factor for fans to be obsessive about their teams is identity. More sports fans are more likely to be motivated to support a given sport by loyalty and identifying with the team instead of entertainment values (Settimi, 2020). This is a fan’s emotional involvement and personal commitment to a given sports team. They feel a sense of belonging to the team when they have high identification levels (Oakley, 2019). This factor makes these fans do whatever they can to support and be a part of the team’s fan base. Thus, a sense of identity with the team also makes a person very passionate.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the contributing factors could range in terms of a given sport or activity or the fan’s socio-demographic status. In a landscape that has continued to grow and evolve, ways to change sports fans’ preferences must be met. Creating and nurturing a strong fan base is crucial for managing a leading sports team. Therefore, top brands should dedicate a lot of money, time, and effort to develop and promote their teams to continue attracting and maintaining more passionate fans.
References
Oakley, D. (2019). Why do people get so passionate and emotionally attached to sports teams and competitors? Medium. Web.
Settimi, C. America’s most passionate sports fans 2020. Forbes. Web.