New data on UK fans shows vast majority are keen on the women’s game

The GIST: A new data report from Sky Sports — the UK’s largest investor in media rights across women’s sports properties — proves women’s sports are very mainstream, with 80% of UK fans expressing interest in at least one women’s sport. Let’s dive into the numbers.

💪 Once again, dynamic (and often fluid) women’s sports fans prove why marketers should pay attention to them. People that watch women’s and men’s sports (like many of our GISTers) view five more hours of sports content per month, are 10% more likely to pay for sports subscriptions, and like twice the number of sports compared to fans of only men’s sports.

👶 While everyone watches women’s sports, young people watch them more. The aforementioned 80% figure rises to 85% among those aged 35 or younger, proving younger millennials and Gen Zers have their eye on the ball. But there’s an accessibility gap: While 37% of this age segment likes player personalities and stories, over 40% find this content tough to find.

🎾 The UK isn’t just obsessed with footy — tennis is causing a racket. The sport sees the most fan crossover between the women’s and men’s side, with 77% of tennis fans enjoying matches across gender. Tennis fans also had the largest portion of fans (61%) who were energized by live games compared to other popular UK sports like soccer, cricket, and golf.

Zooming out: These insights highlight UK sports marketing opportunities, but also underscore key lapses. Only 59% of women’s sports fans are committed to (i.e. dedicating at least one hour weekly) at least one women’s sport compared to 93% of men’s sports fans, and only half of women’s sports fans find info on player skills easy to find, compared to over 66% of men’s fans.

• This data illustrates why it’s better to engage with sports fans who love women’s and men’s sports, because they tend to be highly engaged and energized by a general love of the game regardless of gender. That’s pretty much the gist of it.