THE SPIKE IN STREAMING: ANALYZING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SUBSCRIPTION-BASED BROADCASTS AND IN-PERSON MATCH ATTENDANCE IN DIVISION I POWER 4 WOMEN’S COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL

Women’s college volleyball has seen significant growth in both attendance and broadcast viewership, as there are more eyes on the sport now than ever. With the expansion of streaming platforms, and more attention on college volleyball across social platforms, fans have an even more difficult decision in attending the match or watching from home. The following thesis examines the relationship between streaming college volleyball matches and in-person match attendance, to assist athletic departments in determining fan attendance behavior and explore if more broadcast options serve as a substitute or a complement to attending the match in-person. A linear regression model was run with match attendance as the dependent variable, while the broadcast variables, and a series of other control variables served as independent variables to predict fan attendance demand. The final regression model revealed the relationship between the various broadcast platforms and in-person attendance, while controlling for other variables that also impact attendance, and ultimately provide athletic departments and administrators with further insight on the value of broadcast production and ways to increase attendance as women’s college volleyball continues to garner more fan interest and attention in the media.