You can have the best ticket offers, the best sponsors, and the best fan data — but if you do not understand your fans’ journey, you are leaving revenue and engagement on the table.

Fan journey mapping is about seeing your club through your fans’ eyes: where they first discover you, how they buy tickets, when they interact with your content, and why they stay loyal (or drop off).

When you map the fan journey, you can remove friction, target fans with the right message at the right time, and create experiences that keep them coming back.

The challenge: Clubs often miss the full picture

Most clubs know their matchday numbers, but many struggle to connect the dots across channels and touchpoints. Data sits in silos, ticketing, merchandise, app, website, and social, making it hard to understand what fans need next.

Without a clear fan journey, you risk sending the wrong messages, wasting marketing spend, and missing easy wins to upsell, cross-sell, or re-engage lapsed fans.

The solution: A clear map unlocks growth

A good fan journey map turns scattered data into a clear story. It shows you:

• Where fans discover you (social, email, word of mouth)

• How they engage (website visits, app usage, ticket purchases)

• What drives conversion and loyalty (personalised offers, hospitality, sponsorship activations)

• Where they drop off (abandoned carts, lapsed attendance, ignored emails)

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When you know this, you can build campaigns that match each stage, remove friction, and deliver value fans actually want.

How to create a fan journey map

1. Gather your data

Bring together insights from ticketing, CRM, website analytics, social media, and apps. This unified view is the foundation.

2. Identify key fan segments

Not every fan has the same journey. Define groups like loyal season ticket holders, occasional buyers, families, VIPs, or international fans.

3. Map touchpoints and moments

Plot how each segment discovers, engages, buys, and re-engages. Identify pain points and opportunities.

4. Design actions for each stage

Create campaigns that guide fans to the next step: upsells, reminders, exclusive offers, and loyalty rewards.

5. Test and optimise

A fan journey map is not static. Keep improving it as you learn what works.

Results you can expect

When you map the fan journey well:

• Ticket sales increase because fans get relevant, timely offers.

• Merchandise revenue grows through smart upsells.

• Sponsors see better ROI because activations reach the right audience.

• Fan loyalty deepens because every interaction feels personal.

Real examples

• Pre-match: Send parking and travel info plus last-minute upgrade offers.

• In-stadium: Use push notifications for food, beverage, or merchandise deals.

• Post-match: Thank fans and offer early-bird tickets for the next game.

• Lapsed fans: Trigger win-back emails with special incentives.

Playmakers’ perspective

Fan journey mapping is not just a marketing exercise — it is the backbone of running your club like an e-commerce business. The more you understand your fans, the more value you create for them, your sponsors, and your bottom line.