Why Too Much Soccer Coverage Ruins My Day

Storyline: Soon after Discover was released on Snapchat, The Bleacher Report got its own channel. How great I thought. But what I found was soccer, more soccer, and very little else. I feel like it’s Christmas when I see a NFL or MLB highlight. Written by Raffaella Keshishian, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Twitter, Facebook, Snapchat. In the 21st Century, if you are somebody without an account on one of these platforms, are you a somebody?

Courtesy: wired.com

As an eighteen-year-old I am an avid Snapchat user. Sending selfies and posting snap-stories are my happy time!

Last year, Snapchat updated its app by releasing a new feature, called Discover. Discover consists of twelve different circles. Inside is a mix of news, videos, and personal experiences posted from the publishers’ websites. Swipe up to read/watch the story. Swipe to the left to read something new. Swipe down to close the channel. Each day is something new.

Discover is a great medium for a full-time college student like me. I browse while in the bathroom, waiting for a friend, or riding the bus. I’m getting on with my day — with something new to read or check out. You can also press down to share a story you find interesting.

Fusion calls this the “biggest thing in news since Twitter.”

Courtesy: twitter.com

When Discover was released I felt lucky that The Bleacher Report got its own channel. That way I could view last night’s highlights and not feel so out of the loop … or so I thought.

Almost every morning my experience with The Bleacher Report channel leaves me frustrated. Open the channel. Soccer. Swipe left, professional soccer players. Swipe left again, yesterday’s soccer highlights. As I’m about to swipe down, finally, I see a dunk by LeBron James. Swipe left again, Fantasy soccer.

I feel like it’s Christmas when I see an NFL or MLB highlight on there.

On its website The Bleacher Report there are sports journalists and bloggers who cover the NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, MMA, college football and basketball, NASCAR, Fantasy sports, and more. But that’s on its website. And I don’t have time to go on the website every day to see what I missed last night.

Courtesy: bleacherreport.com

We all know Snapchat is developing into a global phenomenon. It’s a platform for people of all sorts to express whatever it is that they’d like to express. DJ Khaled rose to his newfound throne sharing his success on Snapchat. Daaaamn, Daniel got on Ellen and a lifetime supply of Vans after making few funny Snapchats.

The platform is great for marketing anything. People with ranging interests have accounts.

But with soccer as the main, and sometimes only, feature stories on The Bleacher Report’s channel, how can it become a popular a brand without variety? Of course, that is NOT the case at the website–only at TBR’s Snapchat Discovery channel.

If I hadn’t gone on Twitter or Facebook I would have missed Stephen Curry’s 51-point game. The Bleacher Report shared a story about a former soccer player, Faustian Asprilla, wearing a dinosaur costume and riding a hoverboard. The only highlight (other than soccer) was Aaron Gordon of the Orlando Magic dunking the basketball–during the same game Stephen Curry scored 51 points! Another story was about an NFL player who had a crooked finger.

Courtesy: thedrum.com

It would be great to get more variety of sports stories and highlights into their Snapchat Discovery channel–to get an all-around daily dosage of sports.

Sports bring people from all around the world together. Sports help people of different nationalities to engage and interact, which strengthens the bonding of not only states and cities, but possibly even countries around the world.

When the 2016 Olympics go to Rio this summer I hope that The Bleacher Report shares more than just phenomenal soccer games. I want to see track and field, weightlifting, volleyball, gymnastics, and the two new additions– rugby sevens and golf.