From CNN.com: Soccer fans have never been shy about expressing their opinions, but this year’s World Cup in South Africa — which will be the first of the “social media age” according to many — may see record levels of global interactivity.
Sites such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube were in their infancy in 2006, when the last World Cup took place in Germany, but have since exploded in popularity.
Social media now connects millions around the world — 50 million tweets are sent daily while Facebook boasts more than 400 million active users — a development that will allow fans separated by distance to celebrate goals or critique referee decisions together online.
“Football is the world’s biggest sport, so the world will practically stop for the month of the World Cup,” Matt Stone, head of new media for world soccer’s governing body FIFA, told CNN.
“There will be so much more media consumed, used and published in 2010 than in 2006. Social media can bring fans closer together and give fans more opportunity to communicate with each other,” he added.