A new survey published recently found that fans of the Washington Football Team are the most negative in the National Football League.
The survey, published by World Sports Network, concluded that the Washington Football Team has the most negative fans in the NFL, by a substantial margin. According to the survey, fan negativity increased by 57% after a loss. The Football Team also holds the most consistently negative fan base in the NFL, as well as the 4th most negative fan base across the four major professional sports (football, baseball, basketball, and hockey). The Ottawa Senators’ (NHL) fan base was the most negative fan base across all sports, with a 66% increase in negativity after a loss.
LANDOVER, MARYLAND – JANUARY 09: A detail of the helmet of Chase Young #99 of the Washington Football Team during warm ups before the start of the NFC Wild Card playoff game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at FedExField on January 09, 2021, in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
The survey rated “Fair Weather Fandoms” using a sentiment analysis tool called SentiStrength. The tool detected the emotions of comments posted to each team’s official Facebook page and scaled for “positivity, negativity, and neutrality.”
By measuring the shift in fan sentiments between wins and losses, the survey concluded “which teams have the biggest fair-weather fans based on who becomes the most negative towards their team after losing a game compared to when winning a game,” the World Sports Network website said. (RELATED: Giants Head Coach Joe Judge On Fans Leaving Stadium: Team Must ‘Earn The Fans’ Respect’)
The survey also found that the least negative fan base in the NFL was the Buffalo Bills, who experienced a 20% decrease in negativity after a loss. The Cleveland Browns hold the most consistently positive fan base.