Passion cannot be quantified. After all, you can’t quantify love or devotion.
But Forbes Magazine attempted to do so in the realm of defining the most passionate sports team fan base in America. And when it came to pro sports, they chose, yes…
…the Green Bay Packers.
Forbes used the the criteria of “concrete evidence, including television ratings, game attendance, merchandise sales and social media reach,” the article says.
Using that, it’s easy to see how the Packers earned the title. They usually have more than half its games either on national TV or in the 3:25 p.m. late game time slot. They average nearly 78,000 fans per game with a season ticket waiting list of just names (not tickets, just names) that is 175 percent as big as their stadium capacity. Their merchandising is among the top, and more than seven million people follow them on social media.
The fan base also includes more than 360,000 fan-owners who each have non-profit stock shares in the team. They can never get dividends from the stock. They simply paid a donation in order to have the right to attend the team’s annual meeting and vote on the board of directors.
Among all 123 teams in the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL, the Patriots, Saints, Steelers and Eagles finished two through five, respectively.