The impact of social networks on top athletes

Because of its collaborative aspects, social media have revolutionised the approach and processing of information, especially in the world of sport. The general public is now discovering a new way of communicating in a transversal way directly with the main source of information, mainly thanks to the different functions of social networks. These networks centralise the databases of the main players in top-level sport, such as athletes, journalists and the sports media, as well as the managers of sports structures (presidents, general managers, etc.). This 2.0 meeting of these actors constitutes a varied and unique source of information depending on the type of social network used. The wealth of information disclosed as well as the behaviour of the actors towards these social platforms drastically modifies the communication around high level sport in every respect. In order to deal with this subject, the authors first discuss the use of Web 2.0 in the world of top-level sport. Secondly, they will discuss the business and buzz related to sport and the resulting impacts.