August 17 – A US study into how fans rank their experiences at big league sports in the US has found that Major League Soccer teams rank no lower than second in each of America’s four largest markets of New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Houston against the NFL, MLB, NHL and NBA teams in those markets.
The J.D. Power 2016 Fan Experience Study found that The New York Red Bulls and Chicago Fire rank highest in their respective markets while the Los Angeles Galaxy and Houston Dynamo rank second in theirs.
The research measured customer satisfaction of major professional sports teams across the areas of: “seating area and game experience; security and ushers; leaving the game; arriving at the game; food and beverage; ticket purchase; and souvenirs and merchandise. Satisfaction is measured on a 1,000-point scale. Additional factors that were measured—but not included in the official ranking—were loyalty and future intentions; team performance (on-field); and team image.”
In a competitive market for fans of professional sports franchises, the MLS is making significant headway with growing its game-day fan loyalty, if not significant revenue for its owners.
“Because media rights will soon exceed gate revenue in major pro sports leagues, fan experience is at risk of becoming an afterthought,” said Greg Truex, senior director at J.D. Power. “We know the food tastes a little better and drinks taste a little colder when the home team is winning, but we stripped away fan emotion and evaluated which teams excel in providing fans the best at-game experience, regardless of the final score.”
“It’s clear that forward-looking teams, like those in MLS, are harnessing their opportunity to create positive fan experiences across the full spectrum of touch points and are, in turn, shifting share of wallet,” said Truex. “Teams that add value by incorporating the voice of the fan into their decision-making process can command greater income for sponsorships and media rights.”
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