Australians are all in on sports — 87% say they are interested in at least one sport,1 and it’s not just the national rugby and football leagues that get pulses racing.
Aussies’ interest in sports spans local to global, from the Matildas who sold out a record 14 straight home games since the Women's World Cup last year to the American basketball player Caitlin Clark, who sparked a spike in search interest during the recent NCAA playoffs.2
With Aussies’ interest in sports running deep and wide, all brands, sports-related or not, can tap into that mainstream passion for sports to engage new and existing customers.
So Google commissioned a survey by Kantar on Aussies’ love for sports and their sports-viewing habits, to help marketers better reach and engage them. The research revealed two behaviour trends that can help brands increase customer reach.
Trend 1: Aussie viewers love a diverse range of sports
On average, Aussies say they’re interested in over three types of sport,3 and the variety of sports they enjoy has increased. Forty-five percent say they watch a wider variety of sports now than a few years ago,4 and 1 in 2 say they watch sports they don’t normally view, during a big competition.5
That passion for a wide range of sports is mirrored in search interest — it’s high across a number of different sporting leagues, from the AFL and NRL to the Big Bash League and the Australian Open.6 That’s unlike how it is in other countries, such as the U.K.7 and India,8 where there’s one dominant sport that people are interested in.
One likely reason for Australia’s varied interest in sports is its highly diverse population — nearly half are born overseas or have a foreign-born parent.
The wide-ranging interest extends to international sports, with 2 in 3 Aussies saying they follow both Australian-based sports and sports outside of Australia.9 For instance, search interest in Tottenham Hotspur surged last year after Australian soccer coach Ange Postecoglou took over the reins as manager of the English Premier League club.10
Trend 2: People are looking for in-depth sports content
Aussies’ interest in sports isn’t only diverse, it’s also deep. Our research shows that while live broadcasts of sports are a key part of sports viewership, Aussies nevertheless want to engage with a game before and after its live event.
In fact, 41% of sports viewers watch the live broadcast, while 61% watch content beyond the live game, including event highlights, replays, athlete interviews, and game analysis.11
To satisfy their appetite for in-depth sports content, viewers turn to YouTube. It offers them everything from behind-the-scenes content to reaction videos and strategy and skill explainers, which lets them be fully immersed in sports content.
Indeed, YouTube viewers in Australia are more likely than other Aussies to consider themselves super fans of sports, and regard sports as a huge part of their identity and lives.12 Additionally, 63% of YouTube viewers say they find relevant sports content on YouTube that they can’t find anywhere else.13
YouTube is also the No. 1 platform to watch sports content for multicultural newcomers,14 who are shaping culture bottom-up in Australia. And Gen Z Aussies feel the same way, with YouTube being the video service they watch the most.15
When sports viewers want to go deep on live broadcasts that played earlier on in a different time zone, they also turn to YouTube.
Take for example a soccer game in May between the English teams Chelsea and Tottenham, that aired live at 4.30 a.m. AEST. YouTube searches for the match peaked at 10 a.m. AEST,16 with Aussie fans catching post-game highlights. We expect this pattern to recur at the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics, since the Matildas’ games and other athletics finals usually kick off at 3 a.m. AEST.17
How any brand can reach and engage Aussie sports viewers
For a brand in Australia to grow, engaging with sports viewers — even if the brand isn’t sports-related — can be a game-changer. After all, 59% of sports fanatics feel positive towards brands that advertise around their favourite sports.18 And Gen Z viewers in Australia agree they are the most open to ads in videos on YouTube,19 such as in sports videos.
Tapping into sports fandom, however, doesn’t have to mean spending on a high-budget TV ad or team sponsorship. Your brand can reach sports fans and viewers via YouTube marketing, especially since 1 in 2 sports fans prefers ads around online sports content, instead of those that interrupt live sport on TV.20
On YouTube, your brand can also enjoy the ability to advertise against a mix of different sports like 3x3 basketball, cycling, and extreme sports, to reach Aussies with diverse sports interests. And with YouTube’s use of AI in advertising, your brand can reach relevant audiences in the moments that matter.
For example, with the affinity audiences solution, your brand’s ad can reach Aussies who have signalled an interest in sports, regardless of the topic of content they are watching.
Korean carmaker Kia wanted to build a deep connection between its brand, its new ute for the Australian market, and something dear to Aussies. The key to that was sports, so its campaign for the new ute featured legendary athletes.
In fact, 20 sports stars across various fields like cricket, soccer, tennis and surfing were featured in the ad to match Aussies’ interest in diverse sports.
Kia ran the campaign on YouTube, a key destination for sports fans and viewers, and used the affinity audiences solution to deliver the hero video featuring sports stars to fans.
With its ad assets that feature a single sportsperson, the contextual creative approach was used to make the ad highly relevant to the video a viewer was watching. For example, Australian fans of the English Premier League would see the Kia ad featuring footballer John Aloisi when they’re watching the latest match highlights.
If your brand is looking to hit a home run with stronger customer reach and engagement, show up for Aussies’ love for sports on YouTube. It has a breadth and depth of sports content that appeals to viewers, and it uses AI in advertising that can help your brand be highly relevant to Aussies.
