The role of social media in building engagement and loyalty among fans of Polish Ekstraklasa clubs

Michalowski, Dominik Piotr

http://hdl.handle.net/10400.26/58579

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Authors

Michalowski, Dominik Piotr

Advisor(s)

Nogueira, Mafalda

Abstract(s)

This study investigated how social media influences football fan engagement and loyalty. The study included five clubs from the highest league in Poland (Ekstraklasa). The clubs were carefully selected. The study examined the three most important dimensions of fan engagement such as emotional, cognitive and behavioral dimensions and assessed how emotional engagement affects attitudinal loyalty, as well as providing a descriptive analysis of other forms of engagement and loyalty. Data were collected using an online survey (Google Forms) completed by fans of Legia Warsaw, Raków Częstochowa, Widzew Łódź, Jagiellonia Białystok and Puszcza Niepołomice. This resulted in 231 valid responses, which were carefully analyzed. The results show that emotional engagement is consistently high across all clubs and has a strong, positive effect on attitudinal loyalty (β = 0.746, p < 0.001). In this study, he finds a noticeable gap between psychological attachment and actual digital behavior, suggesting that emotional connection alone may not be enough to ensure active fan engagement on social media. The study also reveals differences between clubs in the strength of this relationship, indicating the importance of context-specific communication strategies. These insights can help football clubs, especially those operating in resource-constrained environments such as the Polish Football League. This work can help build strategies for clubs with a similar profile to build engagement and long-term loyalty.