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The belief system of sports and how content thrives on it

The belief system of sports and how content thrives on it

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Only three things come to my mind which have massive following and interest unparalleled to other aspects of life – politics, religion and sports. These operate on extremes – they generate euphoria on one end and misery on the other end. They bring people together and divide them as well. They create a whirlpool of emotions, adrenaline rush and either stirs life into chaos or brings it to a standstill.However, what is common amongst the three is that they thrive on belief. This belief in sports has matured over time, unknowingly transforming itself into a system. So, how does this system work? Every belief “system” is governed by rituals. As per Evan Zuesse’s understanding (a well-known scholar in the field of comparative religion), it looks something like this.Based on this model, we can see how sports content is designed around these rituals:Conscious actionsEvery sport has its own logic and order. Content makers and marketers should aim to consciously recreate them to make the content more exciting.Play the game in a different environment. The more twisted the game looks, the more exciting the content.Trick shots and freestyleVoluntary actionsThey are all about choice, will and determination. A player chooses to take the pain, ready for both sacrifice and glory, beyond the boundaries normally one sets or gets.Repetitive actionsUnder repetitive actions, we have cheerleading routines, chanting and falling back in formation.Cheerleading routinesEnergise the sporting arena and become a part of the team’s imagery.ChantingThis is all about fans chanting slogans, praising or booing players or a team. It makes great fan content but even in this space, the marketers and content makers can collaborate with fans to produce new chants and get them involved with different brands (a space that largely remains under-leveraged for brands).Falling back in formationSports that were developed post industrialisation such as Football, Badminton, Billiards, Snooker, Golf and many others are based on formations and order.They were all about setting an order because industrialisation was about process and order. Therefore, you disturb the order to score a goal or a point which is what happens when you start playing and then fall back again in formation to start all over again.Even tactics are based on a particular order which thrives on repetition. For example, football formations: 4-4-2, 4-3-3.Stylised actionsThese actions are not necessarily part of the sporting order but create team bonding and entertainment. Players patting each other’s butts, hi-fiv’ing each other. The most prominent ones are goal/point celebrations and different handshakes. Brands can play an active role in creating more content around stylised actions.Symbolic actionsBased on honouring someone – stands in the stadium, trophies and awards named after players just how roads are named after kings, freedom fighters, prime ministers and celebrities.For example, we have all played games with sports cards; they are another way of honouring players, just like how coins in the early days had the pictures of kings and Greek gods engraved on it. They will continue to have great value because they are a part of history and history keeps memories alive.Bodily actionsWhat you generally do on the field is not a normal action that you would perform in everyday life. These are bodily actions that often become synonymous with the sport. This includes the action of kicking the ball, dribbling, and swinging your hand in a certain way.Nike’s write the future campaign in the past had quite wonderfully highlighted some of these actions, their impact on society and how they start trending like the step-overs by Ronaldinho in football shown in the commercial.There are many other famous rituals such as mascots, trophies, lap of honour, kissing the ground, kissing your ring finger when you score a goal or a point, face painting which can be categorised under each of these ritual types.These rituals have multi-dimensional use for content makers and marketers:Use it as a guide or a springboard for new content or collaboration based on these rituals.Use them as overarching content pillars to segment your content.Use it as a rotation model for content to avoid saturation.Rituals play a critical role in keeping the content around sports active and memorable. It can lead to ideas that can generate more interest, revenue and expand the fan base; driving more value for sports and brands.The writer is Moiz Rangoonwala, head of strategy, Invictus Blue Group Malaysia.(Photo credit: 123rf.com)

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