Online sports writing occupies a unique position. On the one hand, you’ve got the hard stats and facts that can be allowed to shape the narrative, as, ultimately, it’s the final score that matters. However, sport is also a form of entertainment that whips emotions into a frenzy, which can also have quite an impact on outcomes in a game.
Subjectivity, particularly among fans and readers, is common. Some will be more optimistic about the most recent game and the rest of the season, while others may be better categorized as realistic. The former lends itself to a more positive crowd, while the other, depending on the team, a more negative one.
So, what’s the right approach when writing about sports online?
Objectivity and Establishing a Voice
While there is wiggle room depending on your potential audience, as we’ll see in a bit, objectivity should remain a core principle of sports writing. If you’re reporting on the events of a sport or leveraging your expertise to offer a forecast, you should be objective in your approach and show how you have been objective.
Sports make this quite straightforward by giving you a plethora of stats and facts to fall back on – provided that you’re not overly selective and relay any that may rub against your statements. As was explained in an opinion piece in The Guardian, you have to be clear about how you find the truth of your story and how you assess it in your copy.
This doesn’t mean sports writing should be limited to listing statistics and facts without context, however. Even if some don’t perceive it to be, sports are entertainment. So, even while relaying stats, facts, and basing your opinions on those, you should lean into the action of the genre.
Using dynamic language while avoiding clichés is recommended, according to WriterMag, as it keeps the action and events alive in your copy. Your text will flow with the emotional swings of the game, which can lead to a more impassioned and subjective stance. You’ll find your voice in how you decide to use tone while remaining objective.
Knowing What Your Audience Wants
Unfortunately, you can’t please everyone. Each fan will have their own opinion on what just took place and the direction the team should move in. This shouldn’t discourage you from making more assertive statements or predictions, provided that you can back them up with strong and objective reasoning.
However, you need readers and want to connect to fan bases where you can, so leveraging a different tone is important. In this way, fan optimism can play a big role in what audiences you’ll appeal to. A Betano study found that U.S. sports fans tend to be more optimistic than their Canadian counterparts.
Canadian NFL and NHL fans also demonstrated notable optimism, though not as high as U.S. fans in MLB, NHL, NBA, and NFL. Zooming in, specific team loyalty will also play its part. More loyal fans will, generally, be more open to a realistic write-up than discourageable disloyal fans.
Writers should develop a tone that aligns with their style and resonates with their intended audience. Through, having a bedrock of objectivity will only serve you well in this journalistic field.