Another season of school soccer is underway, following a record-breaking 12 months the place viewers consumed greater than 179 billion minutes throughout Nielsen-rated networks—a 9% improve year-over-year. Building on the inaugural NFL Fandom Index, Nielsen is increasing the franchise to the gridiron’s different powerhouse: the Nielsen Scarborough Local College Football Fandom Index, which identifies the place the sport’s pulse beats strongest throughout America’s native markets.
The prime of the Index is dominated by mid-size markets close to flagship applications, the place few competing skilled sports activities franchises exist to separate native consideration.
The prime 5 DMAs are Birmingham, Des Moines/Ames, Columbus, Omaha, and Knoxville.
Like its NFL counterpart, the College Football Fandom Index strikes past easy viewership counts. It attracts on eight distinct metrics to seize the full spectrum of fan engagement: attire purchases, normal curiosity ranges, live-event attendance, betting intent, social media engagement, radio listenership, streaming habits, and linear TV viewership.
Birmingham’s #1 end (rating: 230) underscores the depth of fandom inside the SEC. The Alabama/Auburn market leads in curiosity and occasion attendance, whereas rating in the prime 4 for attire, social media, radio, streaming, and TV viewing.
Des Moines/Ames (#2, 212) presents a extra specialised profile. While the Iowa State/Iowa market leads outright in attire purchases, social media following, and radio listening, it ranks final in betting intent. This suggests a fan base whose ardour is deeply rooted in conventional native channels moderately than the broader nationwide development towards sports activities wagering.
Columbus (#3, 205) leads in streaming and locations in the prime 4 for attire, curiosity, social media, radio, and TV viewership – a “shows up everywhere” sample just like Philadelphia and Cincinnati in the NFL rankings. Chattanooga (#7, 174) mirrors this breadth on a smaller scale; whereas it doesn’t lead any single class, it persistently ranks in the prime 5 for curiosity, betting, and streaming to safe a top-10 spot.
Omaha and Knoxville spherical out a prime 5 constructed on consistency. Omaha leads in TV viewership and ranks second in radio and third in attire, but fails to crack the prime 15 in betting—highlighting a broadcast-first, wagering-averse Nebraska fan base. Knoxville maintains the most balanced profile exterior the prime three, rating in the prime 10 for seven of the eight metrics, with social media (thirteenth) being the solely outlier.
Betting intent usually disrupts the leaderboard. Memphis, ranked tenth general, posts the single highest school soccer betting index in the nation—surpassing Birmingham and Columbus. New Orleans (#8 general) follows carefully, rating second in betting. Neither market leads in attire or conventional media, suggesting that wagering intent tracks alongside a special axis than the attendance-based loyalty that defines the prime of the Index.
Perhaps the clearest theme is the absence of main coastal metros in the prime 20. Atlanta (#9, 161) is the solely massive multi-sport market in the prime 10, propelled by regional proximity to SEC (and ACC) faculties, and a top-five betting index moderately than merchandise or attendance dominance. Ultimately, the Nielsen Scarborough College Football Fandom Index reinforces a sample: America’s most intense sports activities fandom isn’t concentrated in its largest media hubs, however in school cities and legacy markets constructed round groups the whole neighborhood can rally behind.
