How social are squash and tennis pros?

Top ranked tennis players on FB

So, how social are squash and tennis pros?

Whether right or wrong, likes on Facebook and followers on Twitter are considered a direct measure of a person’s influence. The debate about the quantity vs. quality of followers on social media is not new. While the importance of quality cannot be discounted, in many cases, the quantity of followers and subscribers is seen as a bigger opportunity.

While you can’t take likes to the bank, Rafael Nadal’s thirteen million likes are nothing to sneeze at.

Take for instance Facebook’s takeover of the fifty-five-employee company WhatsApp. The mind-bogging purchase tag of $19 billion would appear to be largely driven by the 450 million subscribers of WhatsApp, at that time, rather than any immediate revenue opportunity. To explore this further, I decided to take a quick look at how social the top squash and tennis pros are on social media.

As ambassadors of squash and tennis, do the pros hold some responsibility to promote the profile of the sport through social media?

Top 3 Squash Pros on FB

A comparison of the top three pros in each sport shows that tennis players seem to have a head start on Facebook.  The wider audience and its profile as a spectator sport must have a direct bearing on this vast disparity. Going by the number of likes, Ramy Ashour, currently ranked third in squash, appears to be the most popular squash player on Facebook.

Tennis vs. Squash Pros on Twitter

The gap seems to widen on Twitter. While Rafa Nadal and Novak Djokovic have millions of followers, the top-ranked squash players are followed by less than fifteen thousand fans respectively. As can be seen here, Gregory Gaultier, ranked number two in the squash world rankings, appears to have taken a pass on Twitter.

A further look at the social media following for the two governing bodies of tennis and squash reflects the trend seen among the players.

Tennis & Squash Professional bodies on Social Media

So what is it that tennis players do that the squash players do not?  Is it a result of the difference in the sheer size of the fan base? Or, is there a lesson to be learned?

Disclaimer: The data included in this post is directly taken from the players’ public Facebook and Twitter profiles and is subject to change over time.

Do you have a comment or suggestion?