We have an exclusive new mag that we think you’d all love to get your hands on… 👀
The team at Rising Ballers have given us a sneak peak of “THE NEXT WAVE VOL. 1” – a brand new comprehensive football culture report delving into an array of research topics important to the Gen Z consumer.
Last Thursday, they hosted a prelaunch party to celebrate the upcoming launch of the report. The report is now available for viewing (link below), and it is filled with gems! Coming in at nearly 90 pages of fresh research, this is a must read.
Titled The Next Wave Vol.1, the report is the biggest of its kind and provides key information made easily accessible and completely free – perfect for those interested in developing a better understanding of the football industry, building brand awareness and reputation within football and learning more about how Gen Z interact with the game and its assets.
The combo of quantitative and qualitative analysis produced the most comprehensive coverage – Rising Ballers surveyed over 1,000 young people asking almost 100 questions about all things football. The mag also includes insightful chats with Gen Z footballers from grassroots, non-league and academy levels as well as with experts within the field including current and former players and industry leaders.
To name a few – Marvin Sordell (ex pro and advocate), Molly Bartrip (Tottenham Hotspur Women player), Katie Chapman (ex pro, coach and advocate), Megalie Mendes (AoF), Deese Kasinga (ex pro) and Tyrhys Dolan (Blackburn Rovers player).
The insights are unmatched – Rising Ballers have identified nuggets of information that will have a lasting impact on the industry and on brands looking to expand reach, impression, engagement and awareness. Furthermore, the insights outlined are actionable: with every stat comes major takeaways that will help inform decision-making and drive positive change.
Not only is the research relevant to today’s young consumer, Gen Z, but can evolve to cater the next wave: Gen Alpha. The report includes the most up-to-date research you can think of, straight off the press – reflecting current events and pointing to future trajectories and trends. Beyond just reporting, the mag has a strong storytelling element that acts as a platform for the youth of today to share their often overlooked and unheard opinions and thoughts on the many elements that comprise the beautiful game.
The Next Wave Vol.1 addresses five main topics – namely, Convergence of Cultures, Inauthenticity and Monetisation of Football, Discrimination, Mental Health and Women’s Football – all in the context of how the Gen Z football consumer behaves and engages with the many facets of football. From social media consumption habits to off-pitch engagement to improving EDI… the report covers it all.
The reoccurring theme seems to be authenticity, referenced throughout the report and highlighted at the end. Rising Ballers share that Gen Z are hot on authenticity and value honesty, personality and transparency – essential factors brands should look out for in attempt to develop trust and loyalty. This can be further applied by brands looking to collab with professional footballers and leverage their status and social media presence.
Some of the most startling findings include the fact that racism is overwhelmingly still seen as a big problem in football, with 99% of Gen Z football consumers sharing that racial abuse is a persistent issue. Additionally, Rising Ballers found that of those who have been let go in the past, 73% shared they received little to no support from their team, club and/or manager following release. Mental health is a taboo topic and even more so in the football world.
Here are some more snippets of some of the most eye-opening findings in the report.
Having been given a sneak peek of the report, we’re excited to read the rest of it. Hear from some of the team behind the report…
“We’re very excited to get this out to everyone. Having been immersed within football for a long time, the growth of the game is hugely important to all of us here at Rising Ballers. It was important for us to put this report out there, for free. As we delved into this project, we realised there was so much more to go into. It’s nearly at 100 pages long, but we feel like we’ve only scratched the surface. We look forward to chatting with our friends in the space about more specific research projects, some of which we are already delving into now.” Eni Shabani, Founder.
“We hope this report is read for entertainment and pleasure purposes but also for educational and collaboration purposes. It is the first of its kind and we are extremely excited to share it and really open those important channels of communication. The hard work and team effort has made us all here at Rising Ballers extremely proud of the final magazine!” – Carol Konyn, Report Lead.
To access the report, you can download it here on the Rising Ballers website.
For hard copies of the magazine, please reach out to Carol Konyn (carol@risingballers.co.uk).
For more specific research and insights projects that you’d like to talk to Rising Ballers about, please reach out to Sandy Mair (sandy@risingballers.co.uk).
To read more from our Insight series, click here.
