Posted on August 15th, 2010
So the Premier League is up and running again, giving 9 months of hopes, fears and palpitations to fans, not only across the land, but globally. I suppose I always knew that English football had international appeal, having seen how much it meant to so many in South Africa, a time when I was only 6 years old.
Oddly enough, during this period when Liverpool were the most feared club in Europe, I recall there being a high proportion of Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester United supporters out there, whilst when I last visited, I was surprised at how many Liverpool fans I met. You never associate South Africa as a country that supports the underdog!
It has become even more evident to me since the advent of Twitter that Liverpool Football Club has a truly global reach. I will not say unique, because a certain rival in the North West, and of course the Spanish giants of Real Madrid and Barcelona, can boast similar support.
However, it is Liverpool fans that I choose to follow, and this afternoon’s match has allowed me to talk LFC with those from across the world, to include Kenya, South Africa, New Zealand, Malaysia, Canada and even Alaska. It is quite phenomenal when you think about it really, having the opportunity to share your passions in what is close to real-time.
Much of this is the result of the bright idea of a young Liverpudlian student with the online pseudonym of Danny B, who decided to start a Twitter Trend.
Now what indeed is a Twitter Trend, some may ask? Essentially, by adding a ‘hashtag’ (#) to a tweet, you signify to Twitter that you are talking about a certain topic, and if enough users use the same hashtag, it will eventually feature in Twitter’s trending topics.
For example, if watching a Liverpool match on Twitter, I may do a search on #LFC, allowing me to see all the entries that people have or are writing with the #LFC hashtag. It really is as simple as that!
Danny’s idea was to trend the hashtag #LFCfollowback, and it became immediately popular. Liverpool supporters just added that on to their tweets, encouraging any other supporter to follow them. Within a short time, many users doubled their Twitter friend base, safe in the knowledge that the additions had shared passions, well at least one in the shape of the football club that they support.
I hesitate to use the word audience, because that suggests that Twitter becomes the forum of the exhibitionist, or those solely seeking attention, but it is logic that if you use this form of social media, it is better to connect with as many as possible, within reason.
Watching Liverpool playing Arsenal this afternoon was a great experience, not only for the match itself between two great clubs, but for sharing every moment with such a diverse, yet passionate, group of people.
Amongst those with whom I interacted today were a soap star, the wife of a Liverpool player, an ex-Wales Rugby captain and several other ‘normal’ folk from every corner of this earth … and all because of the hashtag #LFCfollowback.
The rules are different on Twitter, but I live by a simple edict of respecting every opinion and treating everyone as I would hope to be treated myself. Actually, if this is so, maybe Twitter is not so removed from reality, as this is how I would wish to behave in real life.
I have met some truly wonderful people on the Twitter adventure, and the many Liverpool fans, with whom I communicate with daily, have served only to heighten my passion for the club that we support, and my enjoyment of supporting them.
So onwards we go into the new season, one that I will be share with about 854 people more than I did last year’s. Liverpool players and supporters historically never walk alone, and whilst there is #LFC or #LFCfollowback, not to mention a 3G or Wireless signal, I shall never again watch alone either.
And remember, if you want to be an interactive Red, sharing thoughts and becoming friends with Liverpool fans everywhere, just get on
Twitter and ‘
follow back’!
Posted in Football, Liverpool, Social Media, Sport, Twitter |
