Tell Me How You Really Feel. What Makes Yankee and Red Sox Fans Tick.
Jul 20, 2013; Boston, MA, USA; A fan makes a catch on a foul ball during the ninth inning in a game between the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 12, 2013; Bronx, NY, USA; Fans hold signs referring to New York Yankees right fielder
Ichiro Suzuki(not pictured) during the first inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Debby Wong-USA TODAY Sports
Boston vs. New York. Red Sox vs. Yankees. Charming Fenway Park vs. imposing Yankee Stadium. Baseball cogniscenti Bostonians vs. baseball entitlement royalty New Yorkers. It’s a no-brainer to say Red Sox and Yankee fans don’t like one another not much if anything about their respective opposing teams. But what about all the other things they like? What makes Yankee and Red Sox fans tick?
The fascinating folks at blog.gravity.com have recently published a great post called “What Your Team Says About You“. It reveals insights into not only Red Sox and Yankee fans but fans of another classic rivalry, the Giants and the Dodgers. Without going into all of the awesome InfoGraphs and data in the blog, these revelations below should be enough to whet your appetite.
- Red Sox fans…
- Are the most socially minded of the four fan bases.
- They have the greatest focus on local and cultural traditions (hurray for St. Paddy’s Day).
- Edge out the competition in their love of beef and video gaming (a very different Saturday night than Giants fans apparently are having).
- Are more than 5 times more likely to put on their Bronie gear and watch My Little Pony than an average Internet user.
- Yankees fans…
- Have an unusual Interest Graph composition. While they have a relatively low number of topics in which they are highly interested, the volume of topics they cover is well above normal levels for a cohort of this size. This is likely a function of the general appeal of the Yankees to fans that are more geographically and demographically diverse.
- They lead the pack in their interest in exotic dancers and nude recreation.
My two favorite graphs are below. Click the link above and enjoy. All I can say in closing is My Little Pony? Really?