As the sun sets on the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games, and the summer spectacle’s International Federations (IF) turn their focus to Los Angeles 2028 (LA28), audience attention will be thrown during the next 18 months to the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Games, which will mark the first time in Olympic and Paralympic history that the two events are formerly hosted by two regions.
The Winter Games will also represent a milestone for its sporting disciplines, and their respective IFs. For example, this is pertinent within their drive to nurture digital audiences and higher engagement levels, which peaked during Beijing 2022 across the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) digital channels, while global streaming audiences grew exponentially during the Beijing 2022 Opening Ceremony over Pyeongchang 2018.
Speaking on the subject during the last winter edition, the outgoing International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach said, at the time, that digitalization was having a “profound effect” on the way fans engaged with winter sports. Two years on, and the Olympic Movement is hurtling towards a new age of digital consumption – highlighted by N3XT Sports proprietary research for the Olympic Digital Transformation Report 2023, published last September, which outlines the digital and data maturity of the Paris 2024 Olympics IFs.
According to our latest research, whereas the majority of Summer Olympic IFs (80.6 percent) collect first-party fan data, only 50 percent do so via multiple digital touchpoints, highlighting a disparity in their data-collection capabilities. By comparison, although a lower percentage of Winter Olympic IFs (75 percent) collect first-party fan data, 62.5 percent do so via multiple touchpoints, whereas fewer Winter Olympic IFs do so via direct-to-consumer (D2C) platforms such as mobile apps, ecommerce, and over-the-top (OTT) video streaming.
Meanwhile, Summer Olympic IFs demonstrate a higher maturity when it comes to data consolidation, whereby fewer Winter Olympic IFs collect fan data via a single sign-on (SSO) and utilize a web login to streamline the fan experience. Albeit fewer governing bodies are represented across the variety of sports that will be on display in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, the Summer Olympic IFs whose sporting disciplines were on show at Paris 2024 demonstrate a higher average maturity for their digital and data capabilities, outlining an opportunity more broadly for Winter Olympics IFs to digitalize.
DIGITAL & DATA ANALYSIS | WINTER OLYMPIC INTERNATIONAL FEDERATIONS
N3XT Sports research is carried out with the sole purpose of highlighting the benchmarks and opportunities for sports properties to digitalize and follows a unique methodology focused on the breadth of each entity’s digital portfolio, their ability to collect first-party fan data, and social media presence. Each category offers a maximum of 10 available points (see graphic below), while the organization’s overall score represents an average of its three category scores and are converted into percentages. Download our latest industry and market reports to gain more insight into how we assess sports organizations via these three pillars.
Using this methodology, we have found that Winter Olympic IFs, on average, own a low digital and data maturity, boosted by a stronger social presence. Our analysis identifies the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) as the most digitally diverse and data-rich governing body, and one of only two to provide fans access to their data touchpoints via an SSO or universal login, alongside the International Biathlon Union (IBU).
Albeit fewer IFs are responsible for the array of sports on display at the Winter Games, by comparison, a higher percentage of the Winter Olympic IFs collect fan data via a dedicated newsletter (62.5 percent), mobile app (37.5 percent), and their own online fan-predictor games (37.5 percent) compared to our Summer Olympic IF analysis.
- INTERNATIONAL BIATHLON UNION – OVERALL SCORE 60%
The International Biathlon Union (IBU) is the only Winter Olympic IF assessed to score higher for its data collection (60 percent) than its digital products (50 percent), demonstrating a strong data framework, supported by a unique web login, as well as the IBU’s ability to optimize fan-data collection across its entire D2C portfolio.
Despite owning fewer digital touchpoints than some Winter Olympic IFs, including a dedicated website, mobile app, and online fan-predictor game, the IBU is the only governing body assessed that collects first-party fan data across all its digital products – not only its data touchpoints – and to do so via an SSO. This presents the IBU with an opportunity to expand its digital offering without causing data silos or fragmenting the fan experience.
- INTERNATIONAL BOBSLEIGH & SKELETON FEDERATION – OVERALL SCORE 23.3%
The International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) has yet to integrate a fan-focused digital-product offering into its ecosystem while the governing body’s digital portfolio focuses on athlete rankings and race results. The IBSF also offers its members access to its dedicated Athlete Hub.
While the IBSF does distribute video content via its website, it is imported via the governing body’s dedicated YouTube channel, and therefore does not cater for the collection of first-party fan data via a dedicated video-streaming product.
- WORLD CURLING – OVERALL SCORE 43.3%
The World Curling Federation’s (WCF) digital products score (40 percent) falls below the Winter Olympic IF average, though scores slightly higher-than-average for its fan-data collection (30 percent). Within its D2C portfolio, the WCF collects first-party fan data via its website and the Curling Channel streaming service, though it does not yet own a dedicated mobile app, ecommerce platform, ticketing portal, or fantasy-gaming product.
Going forward, the governing body could benefit from an assessment of its data touchpoints and to consider areas where it can leverage unique fan data and its breadth of video content to boost audience engagement via its digital and social media channels, helping lay the foundations for, in time, further digital expansion.
- INTERNATIONAL ICE HOCKEY FEDERATION – OVERALL SCORE 76.7%
The International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) receives the highest score for its digital products (90 percent) and data collection (60 percent) among the Winter Olympic IFs assessed. The governing body provides access to the IIHF Fan Zone across its mobile app, ticketing pages, and online fan-predictor game, and is well-placed to expand its audience reach and subscriber retention within a centralized fan-data ecosystem.
According to our research, the IIHF has yet to maximize its data-collection capabilities across its entire D2C portfolio, hence why it scores lower for data collection versus digital products. Nevertheless, unlike many governing bodies across the Olympic Movement, the IIHF owns a strong foundational framework for optimizing dataflow and enriching the fan experience.
- INTERNATIONAL SKATING UNION – OVERALL SCORE 43.3%
The International Skating Union (ISU) scores lower-than-average for its digital products (30 percent) and data collection (20 percent). While the governing body owns a dedicated website and mobile app, its data collection is focused on newsletter signups, which are made available to users via both web and mobile.
Nevertheless, the ISU does have a significant social media following across multiple channels and disciplines, positioning the governing body for further digital expansion. It also holds the opportunity to introduce personalization features, based on its different disciplines, and to segment the distribution of video content across its subscriber base. Within the ISU mobile app, the federation allows users to personalize their experience by selecting their favorite athletes.
- INTERNATIONAL LUGE FEDERATION – OVERALL SCORE 33.3%
The International Luge Federation (FIL) also scores lower-than-average for its digital products (30 percent) and data collection (10 percent). Its primary source of fan data is collected via the FIL Luge Predictor Game, which offers winners a selection of prizes, while the governing body could benefit from introducing other fan-data subscription touchpoints via its dedicated website.
Although the FIL provides in-event live streams to its digital audience, the governing body does this via its dedicated YouTube channel, and therefore does not yet cater for the collection of first-party fan data via its video content.
- INTERNATIONAL SKI & SNOWBOARDING FEDERATION – OVERALL SCORE 66.7%
The International Ski and Snowboarding Federation (FIS) receives the second-highest score for its digital products (80 percent), though comes third for its data collection (40 percent), highlighting a disparity between its digital and data maturity levels. Within its diverse D2C portfolio, the FIS collects first-party fan data via its dedicated website, FIS TV streaming service, and FIS Gaming Zone.
While the FIS mobile app provides users with a centralized experience, including access to video streaming, live results, and personalization features, users are not required to log into the application. This offers the governing body an opportunity to build, in time, an omnichannel experience that serves the consolidation of first-party fan data across web, mobile, video streaming, and fantasy-gaming.
- INTERNATIONAL SKI MOUNTAINEERING FEDERATION – OVERALL SCORE 20%
The International Ski Mountaineering Federation (ISMF) will make its debut at Milano Cortina 2026, making it the newest inclusion to the Winter Games. The governing body’s digital transformation is naturally in its infancy and is demonstrated by its low score within our research.
As emerging sports bodies seek to generate audience engagement and subscriber retention, it’s vital that federations such as the ISMF identify opportunities to implement data touchpoints within their digital ecosystems, so as to convert peripheral viewers into loyal fans in time for when its disciplines are showcased on the world’s biggest stage.
WHAT’S N3XT?
Within our growing client portfolio, N3XT Sports is supporting various Olympic IFs on their digital transformation journeys – including United World Wrestling (UWW), World Triathlon, Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI), and FIBA 3×3, to name a few – with a particular focus on data consolidation, digital product development, as well as digital and social media strategy.
Speaking on the subject in a recent article on audience retention, N3XT Sports’ VP of Growth Beatriz Indurain said: “One of the standout learnings from working with our Olympic clients is their desire for building digital communities using optimized processes.
“For most, this has required taking a fresh approach to an old idea, whereby their existing technological ecosystems have been reimagined in a way that centralizes the collection of first-party fan and stakeholder data and serves their digital and social channels to drive audience growth and fan retention.”
Our team at N3XT Sports works tirelessly to develop and implement data and digital transformation strategies across a multitude of sports properties at federation level, competition level, and club level. To find out more about how N3XT Sports can serve your organization, fill out the form below, and we’ll be in touch. Our goal is to drive the digitalization of the sports industry and our clients.