The Badminton World Federation (BWF) started the Star Creation Programme in 2019, designed to make the influence of the players on social media platforms larger. Fast forward one year and it is already reaping rewards.

BWF partnered with Seven League, which is one of the world’s largest digital and social consultancy agencies. The main aim of Star Creation Programme was to increase the popularity of the players and badminton as a sport. 

Over the past six months, players such as Reddy N. Sikki, Chirag Shetty, Michelle Li, Gronya Somerville, Lu Ching Yao and Yang Po Han have all been under this programme and their global social media reach and popularity have increased as compared to before the programme.

BWF General Secretary Thomas Lund said, “This is a unique opportunity for badminton players to connect directly with their audience and reach new ones in a fun, creative and out-of-the-box way.”

The players are given consultation sessions every week and are expected to improve their social media skills, increase the number of followers, create better interactions with fans, build personal brands, inspire the next generation of players and fans and strengthen their profiles.

Through the official BWF website, Michelle Li who has had a 340% increase in interactions with fans and who is one of the graduates of this program felt the positive impact of the programme and said, “I now feel comfortable in what I’m publishing and look to interact more with my fans.”

Additionally, players like Gronya Somerville are partnering commercial ventures to create sponsored content. Somerville, said, “The programme was really helpful and 7league was able to offer heaps of insightful up-to-date information and strategy on how to improve my social media profile as an athlete.”

Chinese Taipei men’s doubles players Lu Ching Yao and Yang Po Han have had a 54% increase in their interaction with fans, and they post content with English and Chinese captions to appeal to a larger audience.

Lu said, “Everything has been great and I’m very appreciative of the programme. Not only on social media but also digital in general. The content shared in our WhatsApp group I have replicated on my channels.”

The next series of this program will soon be announced by BWF, which continues its collaboration with Seven League.