Over 1.3 million viewers tuned into GiveMeSport on Facebook Live as it delivered the PGA Championship earlier this month.
It is the first time that the Championship has been delivered live via social media, and appears to dismiss any suggestion that live sporting content may not translate to social media.
GiveMeSport CCO Jae Chalfin said: “We’re delighted to have brought a new younger audience to this amazing sporting championship, which was watched on our platform by more than half a million 18-34 years old.”
Almost half the audience were in that age bracket, with a heavily male skew. This is significantly younger than traditional TV audiences for the sport, bringing an exciting potential for sports to find a younger audience.
In the US, the average PGA Tour viewer is 64 years old, according to GiveMeSport.
More than 218,000 UK and Ireland viewers tuned in for more than 30 seconds, with an average viewing time in this segment of four minutes and 39 seconds.
Chalfin continued: “I strongly believe that Facebook Live gives us an OTT platform to bring major sport to an always-on audience that complements TV and broadens the audience footprint for sports bodies an innovative way.
“We are confident that our audience potential gives us an opportunity not only to bring existing championships like PGA Golf to our audience, but also allows us to innovate on new forms of sporting content.
“Over the same weekend that we broadcasted the PGA Golf Championship, around a quarter of a million viewers tuned into the eSports Livestream from Silverstone, the first round of our partnership with McLaren to find the World’s Fastest Gamer. With the right content, the right audience and the right platform, sports rights are ripe for reinvention.”
