The displaced fan: the importance of new media and community identification for maintaining team identity with your hometown team

Research question: Individuals who move away from their hometowns often remain fans of their hometown teams. In this study, we examine the impact of new media, differences between hometown and current community identification, and the impact of proximity to a National Football League (NFL) market on the team identification of displaced fans. Research methods: To study these questions, an online survey was conducted. The sample included adult Americans (n = 347) who identify as fans of their hometown NFL teams and currently live more than 100 miles away from their hometowns. Structural equation modeling, analysis of variance, and analysis of covariance were used to examine the data. Results/findings: Through use of a structural model, we demonstrated that social media, Internet streaming, and hometown identification affected hometown team identification. In addition, mean comparisons demonstrated that fans with higher levels of identification with their hometown communities than their current residences also displayed higher levels of hometown team identification than fans more highly identified with their current residences. Whether an individual moves to another primary NFL market after leaving the hometown was not found to have a statistically significant impact on identification with the hometown team. Implications: Engagement is critical to continued identification amongst sport fans. In this paper, we offer justification for both reaching out to non-local fans and keeping them engaged, and insight into possible avenues for fostering engagement. This may partially explain why professional teams in areas with rapid influxes of residents from other cities struggle to build a highly identified fan base.