FanSided 250: Kansas Jayhawks among the best fandoms in the world
In the annual FanSided 250, the Kansas Jayhawks were ranked as one of the top fandoms in the world.
In this year’s FanSided 250, the Kansas Jayhawks ranked as one of the best fandoms in the world, which is really saying something considering the scope of the FanSided 250.
The FanSided 250 ranks the hottest, most buzz-worthy fandom across the world of sports and entertainment. To do this, it takes into account many different factors from readily available information about each fandom. Here’s the official methodology:
"“Our editors met multiple times over several months to nominate, study, and vote on what they believe to be the world’s most popular fandoms across sports and entertainment. Using publicly available information, voting data from FanSided’s millions of readers, and our editorial team’s expertise, we whittled down a list of over 500 nominated fandoms to the top 250. Each year we hope to create a ranking of fandoms that is unique, sparks debate, and reflects what the world was passionate about that year.”"
After ranking number 34 overall last year, the Jayhawks dropped to number 167 overall, and twelfth among the college teams on the list. The drop can probably be attributed to the emphasis put on buzz, rather than just overall fanbases.
Despite a good season by most people’s standards in basketball, the 2019 NCAA Tournament didn’t go great; however, Kansas did make waves in college football.
The Jayhawks’ “buzz moment” actually highlighted the addition of national championship winning coach Les Miles and the excitement around the football program. There’s already quantitative evidence of the excitement around the program, just look at the attendance numbers from the 2019 season.
According to athletic director Jeff Long, attendance improved 74.3% between 2018 and 2019. Kansas football also recorded its first sellout in over a decade when in-state rival Kansas State came to Lawrence for the annual Sunflower Showdown (we won’t mention the outcome).
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You can check out the FanSided 250 here, and see where your favorite teams, shows, movies, artists, and celebrities rank in 2019. It’s pretty incredible that the Kansas Jayhawks made it on this list, and it just goes to show how special the teams that come out of Lawrence, Kansas are.