Euro 2020 – Why UGC is Bringing Sport Home for Broadcasters

So, football didn’t come home (let’s not even go into the heartbreak attached to that statement now), but it did generate some of the highest audience figures ever. A cumulative average of 21.8 million people tuned in for England’s Euro 2020 final showdown against Italy on Sunday night. That’s a whopping 91.2% of those watching TV in the UK at the time.

Football matches, and indeed sports events in general, have always been the big-ticket live entertainment broadcasts that people watch on TV. So, I guess the question you’re probably pondering is - why does this guy think broadcasters should care about user-generated content (UGC)?

A wider angle on the action

Whilst broadcasters play a critical role in bringing sports programming into fans’ homes, the experience they offer doesn’t really have any point of differentiation. It’s live shows, or game highlights in the main, with some VAR or drone footage thrown in. But this is not really reflective of what fans today want – what about the fans-eye view?

They want to live and breathe their favourite sports, they want immersive experiences, they want to capture the zeitgeist and the meaningful stories behind the action as well as the actual game or event itself. After all, sport is not just about the game or even the trophies (again, not crying), it’s about the passion, the fans, the sense of community and shared experience.

UGC is on the front foot when it comes to differentiated sports coverage, whether it be amusing videos from the crowds, a different angle on the action, or the people watching at home, in the pub or at street parties. It’s generations and communities coming together - the grandmother with her face painted in the flag of her nation or the child wearing a shirt with the name of their favourite player. UGC shows the event from every angle and every experience - the joy, the tears, the elation and the heartbreak (oh the heartbreak, yes OK - I’m still feeling it).

How can broadcasters harness UGC to provide a differentiated sports programming experience?

Newsflare has over 600 videos of Euro 2020 alone, a figure that is growing by the hour. No matter what the sport or event we make accessing and getting high quality UGC into production easy.

We specialise in sourcing and verifying videos of every genre and format for production companies around the world. You can search and license from 235,000 videos filmed by our diverse community, and we'll help you find the content your production needs or crowdsource content by putting our 45,000 creators to work on bespoke footage for your production.

Get in touch with a member of our team to find out how we can help you build differentiated sports programming with UGC.