Saturday’s televised Rugby League match between Leeds Rhino’s and Hull made history when 12 of the 13 players on the Leeds team had their names on the back of their shirts replaced by their twitter handles.
Twitter comments by sporting stars and fans are very much in the news at present with GAA President Liam O’Neill hitting out last week at players making comments about integrity on the social networking site.  Finn Harps were quick to respond at the weekend after fans made disparaging remarks about a female referee at their Airtricity League first division game against Mervue United.
Controversy is seen by many though as a path to publicity and a higher profile that can benefit sports teams and individuals.
Premier League winners Man City have been among the most adventurous with captain Vincent Kompany conducting post match interviews through twitter and being hailed as connecting better than any other club with the fans that are often ignored.
Many teams and players have a presence on the service and take care to manage their output so that it presents a fair image of themselves at the same time as giving greater access.
The main scoreboards at the London Olympic Games will incorporate comments from social media and it is increasingly a channel that sponsors and commercial partners will consider as part of any relationship with a sporting brand or star.
One of the Leeds stars was banned from using his name because of an association with boxing and fears that it might encourage violence though the club will be selling replica shirts with it on
“We are always looking for ways to innovate and spread the word about Leeds Rhinos, said spokesman Phil Daly. “With over 500 million users on Twitter worldwide, it is massive around the globe and a tremendous vehicle for us to grow our brand.”
Comments in the Irish media that players should be banned from having twitter accounts are a little out of touch with the reality of modern media where as much as 30% of stories in tabloid media are now drawn from stories originating on the site.
Spanish Primera Liga side Valencia switched to Twitter handles for one game last season while the women’s soccer in Britain allows one player on each team to carry their handle in place of a name.
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