AFL Edges Out NRL To Take Top Spot On Twitter in 2018

Australia’s sport-loving nation loves to express their opinions and views when it comes to supporting and defending their beloved sporting team, so how did yours fair in Twitter’s published trends of 2018?

Taking out top spot for the fifth year in a row, #auspol retained its position as the most Tweeted hashtag of the year, however, on the less serious side of the spectrum, gaming was bigger than ever on Twitter, with the gaming sensation of the year #Fortnite becoming the tenth most Tweeted hashtag in Australia (but…alas, #flossing did not make the list).

Although the NRL produced the most successful Telstra Premiership season in almost a decade, with an uplift in members, crowds and viewers watching and streaming the game – becoming the most watched sport on television in Australia, the AFL came out on top as the most Tweeted about sporting organisation.

The #WorldCup and #AusOpen ranked one and two respectively in the top ten most Tweeted sports hashtags in Australia in 2018, with AFL coming out on top over the NRL again.

The AFL’s West Coast Eagles may have won the grand final this year, but Collingwood FC took out the top spot as the most Tweeted about Australian sports team in 2018. The Matildas also made the list following some stunning displays on the field this year.

As you might have expected, 7 out of the 10 most engaged brands in Australia during 2018 are involved with sporting codes to some capacity, whether through naming rights deals, broadcast rights or stadium sponsorships.

When it comes to Twitter’s most-followed Aussies sportspeople, cricket emerged as the home of the most followed Aussie athletes with six cricketers cracking the top ten. Australia’s international stars Daniel Ricciardo and Ben Simmons also made the list.