Brooklyn Nets Boast 'Tremendous' Global Fanbase

The franchise's marketing has led to international fandom.

Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

The gap between the size of the Brooklyn Nets' and New York Knicks' fanbases is much smaller than you may think.

A running joke among NBA fans, the consensus has always been that the Knicks dominate the Empire State basketball landscape. Thanks to a deep dive into the rivalry from Bob Windrem of NetsDaily, that consensus has been proven false.

"Barclays Center sold out 99% of the time Brooklyn took the court last season. That’s only 0.6% less than what the Knicks drew to Madison Square Garden despite a nearly 20-win difference in their records," Windrem wrote.

The Nets are gaining on the Knicks on the American front, but dominate the landscape overseas. Brett Yormark, Brooklyn's 20-year CEO, has made it a priority to get the Nets in front of international fans. As recent as last season in a matchup with the Cleveland Cavaliers in Paris, Brooklyn's goal has become evident.

“The global fan base of the Nets is in the tens of millions. It’s [over] 50 million, which is tremendous,” NBA vice president George Aivazoglou told the New York Post's Brian Lewis in January. “They’re in the top-3 teams that are followed here in France, and if we look at countries outside the U.S. in general, they’re in the top-10. So the plans and the work that the guys deliver have yielded tremendous results.”

"Obviously, the team and the executives are very much internationally oriented as well; their marketing content is being created in [mind of a] global fan base. Also, it’s a great representation of Brooklyn in itself. Brooklyn is very diverse, a lot of different cultures and ethnicities and nationalities who live in Brooklyn. So I think they should embody that.”

And embody that they do. If the Nets can compete with the likes of the Knicks while underperforming and enterring a total overhaul, just imagine what the numbers will look like once the organizaton gets back on track.

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