Orlando Pride Capitalizing on Zambian Star Barbra Banda

In a 2024 marked by the exponential growth of soccer in the United States, one of the most compelling stories is unfolding in Central Florida. After missing the playoffs since 2017, the Orlando Pride made a bold move this off-season by spending a reported fee of nearly $750,000 to sign Zambian international forward Barbra Banda. Known for her spectacular performance at the 2020 OIympics in Tokyo, where she scored hat tricks in two matches, Banda’s arrival has had an immediate impact. 

The move is paying immediate dividends: on the field, Banda has scored 12 goals in 12 matches earning NWSL EA Player of the Month honors in May. As of right now, the Pride top the NWSL standings as the only undefeated team after 16 matches!

Off the pitch, the Orlando Pride’s digital team, led by Director of Digital Content Aaron Cranford, has capitalized on their new star player. Demonstrating that Facebook is far from an outdated social media platform, the team has leveraged their understanding of the digital audience to achieve remarkable success.

“Before Barbra Banda was announced, we knew that Zambians were passionate and vocal online by looking at Racheal Kundananji’s announcement with Bay FC” said Aaron Cranford, Director of Digital Content at Orlando Pride and Orlando City SC. “So, we were prepared to capitalize on Barbra’s announcement from the very beginning. We planned and captured exclusive behind-the-scenes content of her arrival to Orlando International Airport and scaled up our content from there once we saw the overwhelmingly positive reaction and engagement online.”

On April 14, the Pride’s Facebook video of Banda arriving in the United States received more than 250,000 video views. Since then, the engagement numbers have been extraordinary on the platform.

Using the “Zambia Ku Chalo” rallying cry, the Pride have leaned into their new fanbase on Facebook making sure to feed as much Banda content as possible on the platform and the numbers are stunning.

“Once we saw Barbra’s impact on the field and on the Pride’s social media channels, we knew we needed to highlight her goals, assists, and skills in different ways to engage the new audience,” added Cranford. “This year, we put an emphasis on capturing highlights of the team from the field and from a fan’s perspective in the stands. We share the different angles, from broadcast clips to cell phone-captured videos, to our social channels. Additionally, we share many great photos from training sessions and match days, and we look to include at least one photo of Barbra in these collections to increase engagement.”

With Facebook being the most-used social platform in the landlocked central African nation, the Pride have already earned 1.5 million engagements this season on the platform, with posts regularly exceeding 10,000 likes (a number that would have been unthinkable previously). Since the start of the season, the Pride have added over 175,400 followers on Facebook, growing their Facebook fanbase by 146%. The team has already surpassed their entire 2023 season numbers across all social platforms for engagements, impressions, and video views. 

Since the beginning of April, the Pride are the second-ranked soccer team in North America on Facebook by engagements, trailing only Inter Miami. During this time, the Pride have earned more engagements on Facebook than teams such as Stanley Cup finalist Edmonton Oilers and the New York Knicks.

“What we are seeing with Barbra at Orlando is akin to what Caitlin Clark has done for the Indiana Fever and the WNBA in many ways because whether it’s men’s sports or women’s sports, excellent players and teams garner deserved attention,” said Cranford.

“Emily Cecchini, who is the primary person behind the Pride’s social media channels, has done an exceptional job of capitalizing on that attention with consistent coverage across all channels, and we both hope to convert many of these new fans to long-term followers of the Club.”

It’s going to be a thrilling second half to the NWSL season as the Pride look to make the playoffs for the first time since 2017. We’ll certainly be cheering on Banda and the Pride to make some history that will be sure to make waves on Facebook in Zambia!