Ranting about Chelsea is now a lucrative hobby

By

Chelsea: Mason Mount

Few sports can evoke emotional responses quite like football, with every action on and off the pitch able to generate a whole range of reactions. Likewise, there’s nothing quite like living the experience of a football match, where the passion of supporters is abundantly clear.

However, with stadiums closed and supporters unable to share their passion with others at venues, millions are turning to unofficial football fan TV channels, which have enjoyed a massive spike in viewers during the last year.

According to a study published by American Gambler in January 2021, an incredible 668 million Premier League fans are keen followers of these unofficial channels. Leading the way is Arsenal Fan TV (AFTV), which has clocked up almost one billion views since launching in 2012.

While AFTV leads the way as the most established and pioneering of these unofficial fan TV channels, others have swiftly gained huge followings of their own, sharing reactions and views about other clubs in the Premier League.

The most popular fan channel for Chelsea is Angry Rantman, with the choice of name alone perfectly describing the content on offer. Hosted by an avid Blues fan from India, this channel primarily features one chap offering his take on events that surround the club.

Nevertheless, while the presentation doesn’t quite match those of official club channels, fans appear to love what Angry Rantman has to say, following in their droves to catch his latest video upload on YouTube.

Angry Rantman boasts an impressive following, which has grown 89% over the last 12 months alone. As the chart above shows, what started as a passionate hobby has also become very lucrative, earning the channel more than £85,000 in advertising revenue over the last year.

Blues Fans TV is another channel dedicated to supporter views and opinions, which has also enjoyed a 42% growth, and generated over £32,000 in ad revenue through 2020. In both cases, evidence that passionate football fans genuinely value sharing opinions and experiences.

Furthermore, those opinions also have an economic value. For the unofficial content creators, these new platforms have brought an opportunity to turn their hobby into a lucrative business opportunity, with potential that continues to grow.