Looking back at a year of sport blogging there was still plenty to discover in this strangest of seasons.
I can’t remember who wrote it, but I remember reading that a good way to get yourself through lockdown was to find something that interested you and dedicate some time to that. So this year I decided to ramp up the sport blog I started in 2019.
In 2020 I managed to write over 11,000 words (some of them good, some of them not so good) and produce a series of different graphics (some of them good, some of them not so good). But I enjoyed it, I experimented, and I learned about sport and my own abilities.
To finish the year, I’ve collected the most interesting things I’ve learned in five areas: my own “Big Three sports” that I tend to write about most (horse racing, football and cycling); supporters; and the role of technology.
Going forward I plan to continue writing and expand the number of sports and topics I write about. Hopefully in 2021 there will be plenty to talk about on the pitch, track and road as that will mean there is plenty of sport actually happening – I can’t wait!
Here’s what I learned this year…
Horse racing – learning from the trends can show you two horses to avoid for next year
- Don’t expect Frodon, who won the King George on Boxing Day, to follow up at the Cheltenham Gold Cup next year – since 1982 only 16% of King George winners have gone on to win at Cheltenham.
- It would pay to avoid backing this year’s most expensive yearling if he runs in 2021. If you had bought the most expensive yearling each year since 2010 you would have spent close to £30m and won just under £450,000 in prize money.
Football – money, money, money
- Winning the Premier League this year cost Liverpool £1.1m per point in salaries.
- The English Premier League is a truly global league, with sponsorship trends showing a shift to the Middle East and Asia.
- If you want to assemble a European superteam of the best footballers in Europe, it will cost you a cool two billion euros.
Cycling – the future is looking good
- The future of cycling looks strong as this year continued a trend of younger Grand Tour winners, thanks to an increasingly large pool of young cyclists compared to previous trends.
Supporters need sport, and sport needs supporters
- For one week in May the Bundesliga was more popular than the Premier League (on Google Trends) as fans in the UK got interested in the return of football in Germany.
- Horse racing enjoyed bumper viewing figures as it took advantage of being one of the first sports to re-start in the UK.
- 500 supporters at the Irish Cup Final in July managed to create a better atmosphere and viewing experience than any computer generated system.
The rise of technology and the future of sport
- If your team scores a goal in the Premier League but then it goes to VAR, don’t get your hopes up – 80% of VAR goals decisions have resulted in a goal being disallowed.
- Teams and leagues embraced eSports during the lockdown, and one of the most interesting questions for 2021 will be how far this relationship goes?
Here’s looking forward to a better 2021 and plenty of more stories….
Sport.dat 