Over the past 12 months, my running has gone up a level. At the start of 2024, I challenged myself to run 500 miles yearly. I downloaded Strava (the app for active people), created the challenge, and bribed my sister to do it with me! 

The journey has been incredible, not just for my fitness and progress over the year, but also my desire to consume different content. I’m not saying my love for dog videos has gone away, but I’ve found myself opening Strava five, 10, even 20 times a day, to see how my friends are performing, sending them kudos, and joining more and more brands and communities. My desire to immerse myself in this new world has increased as I’ve sought content, support and chat from similar people. 

Evolution of social apps

Sports and social media connections are evolving and becoming more accessible. There’s a growing interest in passion-based apps and channels such as Strava, where communities are forming organically. Users seek relevant content and targeted messaging within these spaces, demanding maximum value for scroll, or VFS as I like to call it. 

In Strava’s ‘Year In Sports’ trend report, it says it has over 135 million active users growing across 190 countries. It experienced a 59% increase in running club participation globally in 2024, with 58% of survey respondents saying they made new friends via fitness groups, while nearly 1 in 5 Gen Z declared they went on a date with someone they met through exercise! 

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Cultivating communities

People are flocking to passion-based apps and channels to connect with others who share their interests. This trend presents a significant opportunity for brands. According to a GWI report from 2023 titled, ‘Why do we CM?’, 22% of all brand awareness on social media happens in the comments section. It makes perfect sense then to invest in community management. You can seamlessly tap into this ready-made market, building relationships and ultimately driving sales.

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So how can brands maximise this opportunity? 

The most successful brands on passion-based channels are investing in community engagement, cultivating and growing their audience through comments, but alongside this sits reactive community engagement. 

This is seeking and finding audiences to engage with that are relevant to your brand, but not actively following you yet. There are several ways to action this, through key search terms within the app, hashtags, or via influencers and creators. 

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Creating tailored experiences for sports audiences

Social media algorithms are increasingly favouring personalised content, and the sports sector is no exception. Platforms like TikTok, Instagram Reels, and X are already pushing hyper-personalised engagement, and the future will see clubs and athletes tapping into this trend to foster deeper fan loyalty across other channels too. The increasing demand for authenticity is also driving higher engagement rates for athletes, compared to official clubs or brand accounts. A recent study by The Drum found that athletes can drive 2.1-4.8x more engagement than influencers, team accounts, league accounts, and media accounts – and that athlete endorsements can lead to a 164% higher likelihood of a purchase. Looking forward, we expect to see increased collaboration between teams and players to create co-branded content that feels genuine while aligning with commercial objectives to maximise the opportunities across these lesser-known but highly engaging channels. The future of sports and social media is dynamic, with innovation at its core. To remain competitive, UK sports brands must adopt a proactive, community-first mindset, leveraging new technologies and fostering authentic engagement.

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‍To learn how our team can help elevate your social media strategy and content for your sports audiences, visit our website or email hello@battenhall.com.