Facebook Dunks All Over ESPN With ’Sports Stadium’ Live Game Stats Hub
Move over ESPN and make room for Facebook in the sports world. Or more room, we should say. Facebook is already home to hundreds of millions of sports fans, and you might even follow a team or favorite athlete that posts updates in your news feed. The social network is taking things a step further with the introduction of Facebook Sports Stadium, a meeting ground where you can experience sports in real-time and talk trash with friends and family from around the world.
The new stomping ground for sports fans serves up a chronological stream of posts and comments from friends. It also includes posts and commentary from teams, leagues, and professional journalists, plus live scores, stats, play-by-play reporting, and information about the game, such as where to find it on television.
"You can follow the action as the game unfolds with a live play-by-play, and even like, comment on, and share individual plays. You can also get up to speed quickly with live scores and the most discussed plays. It’s a second-screen experience that we hope makes watching the broadcast even better," Facebook says.
The battle for a second-screen experience is a fierce one. There are dedicated sports and chat apps out there, and of course Twitter is a dominant force in the real-time social arena. Where Facebook might have an advantage is its massive base of users -- Facebook claims it has some 650 million sports fans among its ranks.
In addition to a second screen experience, there's also the draw of using something like this to follow the action with friends and family even when you don't have access to the broadcast on TV.
It's a well-timed roll out with the NFL now deep in the playoffs, and it's available now for iPhone users in the U.S. At present, it supports American football games, but will add other sports from around the world such as basketball, soccer, and more soon.
The new stomping ground for sports fans serves up a chronological stream of posts and comments from friends. It also includes posts and commentary from teams, leagues, and professional journalists, plus live scores, stats, play-by-play reporting, and information about the game, such as where to find it on television.
"You can follow the action as the game unfolds with a live play-by-play, and even like, comment on, and share individual plays. You can also get up to speed quickly with live scores and the most discussed plays. It’s a second-screen experience that we hope makes watching the broadcast even better," Facebook says.
The battle for a second-screen experience is a fierce one. There are dedicated sports and chat apps out there, and of course Twitter is a dominant force in the real-time social arena. Where Facebook might have an advantage is its massive base of users -- Facebook claims it has some 650 million sports fans among its ranks.
In addition to a second screen experience, there's also the draw of using something like this to follow the action with friends and family even when you don't have access to the broadcast on TV.
It's a well-timed roll out with the NFL now deep in the playoffs, and it's available now for iPhone users in the U.S. At present, it supports American football games, but will add other sports from around the world such as basketball, soccer, and more soon.
