The cricket world cup is happening right now, and it is too obvious that all influencers are trying to take part in the biggest sports event that happens every 4 years. For as long as we have been online, we have been watching a dedicated group of people who spend days and nights following a sport they love. They may be Football fans, Tennis fans, Cricket fans, Rugby fans and so on.
Social Media’s impact has no denying
Today, social media plays an important role in the life of a sports fan. The players are there, team accounts are there and all the media is there. Since we are huge cricket fans, we have been keeping a close eye on the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 (CWC 19) through social media channels. Luckily, this World Cup is the best for social media supporters.
ICC announced in a press release that the most unique thing about this World Cup is their partnership with various social media companies like Facebook and Twitter. Cricket is being actively followed by 2.5 billion people across the globe, and we are sure that such partnerships have arrived right on time for this World Cup.
For those who have been following cricket on Facebook groups, Quora threads, fan pages, and Twitter, ICC’s investment in social media is like a breath of fresh air. The TV has an important role to play during any big sports event, but each social network adds even more value to the tournament.
The exciting tournament is halfway as you read this, and the conversations on social media are awesome. It is amazing to see how user-generated content like memes and videos perform so well organically and at the same time, marketers spend days thinking of that perfect campaign that leaves a mark.
Digital Insiders covering the World Cup 2019
ICC announced days before the World Cup that for the first time, a team of Digital Insiders will cover the World Cup like never before. It caught our attention immediately, and a quick search reminded us that these digital insiders are, in fact, sports influencers.
We keep reminding brands and influencers in our posts that influencer marketing is the way to go in 2019 onwards. Thankfully, the ICC has proved us right and blessed us with the concept of digital insiders, who hail from different countries.
With each digital insider comes their huge fan following on all social mediums. The team of five insiders includes Niall O Brian from Ireland, Riddhima Pathak from India, Elma Smit from South Africa and Zainab Abbas from Pakistan. Here’s a little about them:
Niall O’Brien
A former cricketer, Niall O’Brien has contributed to the game all his life and continues to do so after retirement. He is actively involved in anything and everything cricket and even if Team Ireland is not in the CWC, this digital insider is there as a cheerful supporter of cricket.
Ridhima Pathak
The RJ-turned TV host has worked for many sports entities in India and abroad. She has worked for many sports and brings her great experience to the CWC as a digital insider. Her team is one of the favorites to win the CWC, and she makes sure the plugs this fact whenever she appears on the screen.
Elma Smit
This amazing lady is also an RJ-turned into TV host and a fabulous one at that. Elma hosted the Rugby World Cup 2011 and also appeared on SuperSportTV as host. She is now an ICC digital insider, but her team has sadly been ruled out of the tournament as we write this 🙁
Zainab Abbas
The most liked female presenter of Pakistan Super League and a super confident host, Zainab Abbas is also a digital insider for ICC. It comes as no surprise to see her at this position because her work has been gathering a lot of attention at home and abroad.
Combined social media following of all digital insiders:
|
|
496,334 |
|
|
441,000 |
|
|
1,503,000 |
Total |
2,440,334 |
This is how many accounts ICC CWC 19 will reach every time these influencers/insiders will post on their social mediums.
Now let’s look at ICC and CWC’s combined social media following:
|
|
10,400,000 |
|
|
31,000,000 |
|
|
10,000 ,000 |
Total |
51,400,000 |
Combined following of digital insiders and ICC platforms: 53.8+ Million fans on social media!
Influencers in the opening ceremony of the World Cup
How cool is it that Malala took part in the CWC 19 opening ceremony for Pakistan, along with Azhar Ali? Not just that, Malala also spoke at the ceremony and held her head high with pride for Pakistan and peace.
Andrew Flintoff, Paddy McGuinness, and Shibani Dandekar hosted the opening ceremony while big names like Anil Kumble, Mahela Jayawardena, Sir Viv Richards, and Brett Lee also took part in it.
Social Media Partnerships
We are happy that the influencers brought their own sparkle to the event. Now, let’s look at each social network and how the ICC is utilizing it for the World Cup 2019:
The most important thing the fans need are the highlights for a match. ICC has made life easy for fans by uploading match highlights moments after a game ends. The sooner they do it, the more traction it receives.
In addition to highlights, there are special shows on CWC page before and after the game, to discuss and interact with the community. Using their incredible resources like Digital Insiders and a team of impressive commentators (most of whom are former cricketers), ICC makes the most of their two Facebook pages.
All press conferences are streamed live on the Facebook page.
YouTube
There is a post-match show called ‘The Review’ which discusses the game and important performances on ICC’s YouTube channel. It is an exclusive show, so you will only find it on YouTube. All press conferences are also streamed live on the YouTube channel.
This real-time social medium has ICC’s heart, or so we assume. Twitter audience can get best shots of the match, those mind-blowing catches, Yorkers and sixes that you would love to play again and again.
In addition, there are news pieces and other videos as well on ICC and CWC’s official Twitter accounts.
This CWC, ICC have implemented all social media tricks from the book to their official channels. Instagram stories during the CWC include daily takeovers by our favorite past and current cricketers, who show us the day through their own perspective.
Insta live is another feature which is used to depict important moments as they happen.
Tik Tok
ICC on Tik Tok, who knew, right? Yes, you have heard correctly. The CWC has its own channel on Tik Tok which has been performing quite well since the start of the tournament. What’s even more impressive is that the content is curated to match the off-beat way of Tik Tok videos.
Last word
At this point, the fans anxiously want to know who will end up in the semi-finals and we are waiting to see how big this tournament goes by every passing day. Kudos to ICC for involving sports influencers in the mix and making it look like a piece of cake. It has opened doors for more amazing partnerships for many more tournaments to come!
We will get back to following the CWC, but if you want to work with the best influencers for your upcoming campaigns, our team is ever ready to help you make it big! Howzat?
