The Sport Social Media Index is an annual league table of all 148 British professional football, rugby and cricket teams, ranked according to the best use of social media by their official club channels. Launched in 2013, the annual Index is compiled by measuring the social media performance of each team based, not just on an algorithm, but research from a team of seven people who looked at eight social networks. The data was analysed by a panel of three judges who presided over the final results.
The Index, produced by PR and social media agency Umpf – and partnered once again by William Hill – includes an overall table of all 148 teams ranked top to bottom, plus nine additional tables showing rankings based on each sporting league based on each sporting league.
Last year, Premier League Leicester City topped the overall 2014 Sport Social Media Index, but this year Ipswich Town from the Championship improved on last year’s third spot by topping the 148-team league (see case study, below).
Other notable inclusions in this year’s top ten included Leeds Rhinos, who climbed an impressive 46 places on last year and Wycombe Wanderers FC, who continue to impress with their strong social media presence, finishing second this year.
Congratulations to Ipswich (Championship), Harlequins (Premiership Rugby), Walsall (League One), Wycombe (League Two), Heart of Midlothian (SPFL), Leeds Rhinos (Super League), Leicester (Premier League), Hampshire (CC Div One) and Gloucestershire (CC Div Two) who topped the table for best social media performance in their respective leagues.
There was an overall 4.3% improvement in the average team score across the 148 teams, from 55.6 last year to 59.9 this year. The average score of the top ten clubs improved by 6.9% from 68.7 to 75.6 this year from a possible maximum score of 100.