Shaping fan engagement behaviour through digital platform features: the role of social capital – an experimental study

Purpose This study aims to investigate how digital platform features influence fan engagement behaviour (FEB; i.e. augmenting, co-developing, influencing and mobilising) in sport clubs by facilitating access to bridging and bonding social capital. Design/methodology/approach Using a 2 (bridging social capital: low vs high) × 2 (bonding social capital: low vs high) factorial between-subjects experimental design, this scenario-based online experiment manipulated platform features of a fictitious sport club engagement platform. 226 sport fans were randomly assigned to experimental conditions. MANCOVA analysis assessed the effects, controlling for team identification, engagement disposition, behavioural loyalty and trust in technology. Findings Results indicated differential influences of social capital types: Platform features enabling bridging social capital positively influenced augmenting, co-developing and influencing FEB, while bonding social capital influenced mobilising FEB. Interaction analyses revealed a negative interaction for mobilising FEB. Engagement disposition significantly predicted multiple FEB dimensions. Originality/value This study is the first to experimentally test how digital platform features influence FEB by facilitating distinct forms of social capital in a sport management context. It extends existing research by differentiating FEB into distinct dimensions (augmenting, co-developing, influencing and mobilising), demonstrating the selective activation of each by platform features. Practically, the findings offer actionable insights for sport managers on designing digital platforms to foster specific FEB.