July 20 , 2010

Sympatico.ca app connects 65,000 soccer fans

FIFA fan connector a huge success y

Released in early June, prior to the opening game of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the Soccer Fans Application developed by Sympatico.ca was an instant success.  With 32,000 downloads in the first week alone, and a total reach of 65,000 downloads during the course of the games, the ability to engage, unite and connect soccer fans was clearly displayed by the Sympatico.ca development team. 

“We knew the need for an application such as this existed, and we are delighted to be one of the few worldwide providers that were able to deliver one,” said Patrick Sullivan, Vice President of Mobile at Sympatico.ca. “Nowadays Canadian sports fans are demanding push applications with interactive functions, and Sympatico.ca’s Soccer Fans App was designed to not only be informative but interactive at the same time – people could share comments, pictures and their feelings in real time with other soccer fans from all over the World.”

While the majority of downloads were Canadian based, the app also garnered international traction with users from France and USA participating, as well as distant regions such as Kuwait and Japan. “Our application was unique because it was not just about soccer, it was about fans sharing their passion” Sullivan continues.  “User feedback told us that people loved the interactive functions of the application as it allowed them to become fan of their favoured team when competing, discuss the events of each match live with other fans and share pictures. It was a true ‘soccer fan’ experience” he concluded.

For each of the 62 games scheduled in the 2010 World Cup, thousands of fans voted for their favourite teams, engaged with the application and interacted together.  Many games connected more than 3,500 fans at once on the platform with over 25,000 instant messages posted in total.

The App Store offers more than 200,000 applications, and Soccer Fan 2010 differentiated itself from the masses while positioning Sympatico.ca as more than just a consumer web portal. “When you land on Sympatico.ca, you are presented with a wide range of channels and products specific to Canadian culture and the needs of our customers,” explained Gary Anderson, the Vice-President at Bell, responsible for the Sympatico.ca Portal. “This application represents just one example of the innovations we work on to meet the expectations of Canadians on a daily basis."