Digital Sport’s Weekly Wash-Up 21/10/16

October 21, 2016 Matthew Schattner

BT Sport celebrates football art

BT Sport has been advertising Champions League fixtures with a series of striking pieces of artwork that cover a diverse range of creative styles.

You can take a look at the images on the BT Sport Instagram, and the channel recently shared a list on Twitter that includes the handles of all its illustrators so you can keep track of their latest work.

You can follow our #ChampionsDraw✏️ illustrators on Twitter and their work throughout this season's competition ???? https://t.co/vz0SFd6Gkd. pic.twitter.com/PrpH0WxFhi

— BT Sport Football (@btsportfootball) October 18, 2016

West Brom’s conditioning Twitter account steals the spotlight

West Bromwich Albion’s strength and conditioning department has its own Twitter account, and it has received praise on social media this week for a neat infographic regarding midfielder Chris Brunt’s return to the pitch after 8 months out from an anterior cruciate ligament tear.

Brunt has lifted the equivalent of 40 elephants and completed the equivalent of 10 triathlons on his road to recovery, and apparently his jump height has increased by 7 percent. The tidy infographic and transparency about recovery through Twitter demonstrate a new way that clubs can use social media to engage fans and even encourage fitness.

Chris Brunt's Road To Recovery #ACL #Rehab #strengthandconditioning #physiotalk pic.twitter.com/ZCH3r1A9km

— WBA FC S&C (@StrengthWBA) October 17, 2016

Facebook improves Live for audience engagement

Facebook has responded to urgings of Facebook Live streamers with the release of Live video scheduling and a pre-broadcast lobby for verified Pages. Publishers can schedule a stream up to a week in advance, and viewers can then join a lobby three minutes before broadcast.

The new features will allow Page owners to more formally craft an announcement post that lets them share links to the broadcast or embed it on other sites. Publishers can now build up hype and excitement in advance, alert viewers of upcoming broadcasts and develop a community environment through discussion lobbies.

Facebook is planning to roll out the features to all Pages within the next few weeks, as well as develop tools for third-party developers. These new features will ideally drive audience engagement and maximize streaming viewership.

Mönchengladbach take spelling struggle in stride

Borussia Mönchengladbach left Celtic with resounding wins both on and off the pitch in Wednesday’s Champions League fixture, as they managed a major victory in the social media department.

The club tweeted a photo of a British pub’s struggle to spell “Borussia Mönchengladbach” when advertising the fixture, with the pub’s crossed out attempts ultimately settling on “A German Club.” The tweet earned just under 27,000 retweets, as well as praise from the Bayern Munich and Bayer Leverkusen Twitter accounts.

The Germans were not done there. Mönchengladbach then changed their Twitter name to “A German Club,” fully committing themselves to the joke.

Don’t let anyone tell you Germans don’t have a sense of humour.