Fandom

Omelete, the Brazilian pop culture company behind the CCXP convention, is integrating its operations to connect more closely with fans. The move unites the media brand and the event business, one of the world's largest pop culture conventions held annually in São Paulo, drawing hundreds of thousands of attendees each December.

Harry Potter has officially lost its number one position as one of the most profitable fandoms of all time, according to a report circulating in entertainment news circles. The franchise, long a benchmark for merchandising, film and licensing revenue, has now been overtaken. Discussion is tying the shift to other major fandoms such as Pokémon, alongside wider entertainment and sports news including the NFL.

Vevo announced a strategy placing music fandom at the centre of how brands connect with culture, positioning itself as a partner for advertisers seeking authentic engagement with music audiences. The company frames fan passion around artists and music video content as a valuable channel for brand building, though details of specific campaigns or partners were not provided.

A Cosmopolitan feature examines the parallel careers of fantasy author Sarah J. Maas and pop star Taylor Swift, arguing both women are at the height of their powers while facing the costs of building sprawling commercial empires. The piece explores how intense fan devotion, relentless output, and near-constant public scrutiny put pressure on each woman at the peak of her success.

University of Montana Athletics published remarks on Ace, touching on themes of sport and fandom. The piece frames fandom as an emotional, communal experience tied to college athletics, though specific details about who Ace is or what was said remain limited beyond the headline itself.

A 2011 radio conversation between Art Garfunkel and longtime Philadelphia DJ Pierre Robert has been recirculated. In it, the folk singer talks about his lifelong Phillies fandom, raising his children, and his complicated personal and professional history with Paul Simon, his partner in the legendary duo Simon and Garfunkel.

A long-read feature revisits the Superclásico, the fierce rivalry between Boca Juniors and River Plate in Buenos Aires, exploring how football fandom in Argentina is bound up with death, violence, colour and family loyalty. The piece traces the deeper social fabric behind one of world football's most intense derbies.

Five Nights at Freddy's fans are debating who the new Vanny character is, with one prominent theory claiming to have proof of the character's identity. The claim has drawn significant engagement from the fandom, as speculation intensifies ahead of new FNaF content. Discussions center on lore clues and character motives within the franchise's expanding story.

The phrase "separation of church and fanfic" is being used as a joke about religious themes and fan culture mixing online, riffing on the constitutional phrase about church and state. It's being shared as commentary on the overlap between fandom and religious devotion.

A personalised basketball jersey themed on One Piece character Nami is being sold online, featuring her signature orange colour with custom name and number options. The shirt, branded as a Straw Hats design, is available for both adults and kids. Fans are being targeted through anime merchandise hashtags, reflecting the growing crossover between sports apparel and anime fandom merchandise.

A Japanese-language Korean lesson quizzes readers on the phrase 'museun sanggwani-nya', literally 'what does it matter', explaining it as a rhetorical idiom used in Korean conversation. The item is published on a lifestyle site under its beauty and fashion section, reflecting the steady demand among Japanese fans for casual Korean language content tied to K-dramas and K-pop.

Researchers at UMass Boston have examined how political ideology shapes fans' enthusiasm for retro and throwback sports jerseys. The work suggests that nostalgia for past teams and eras is filtered through fans' political beliefs, influencing which uniforms they embrace. The study adds to a growing body of research connecting sports fandom with political identity.

Billboard takes an in-depth look at the boy band business, tracing how groups like One Direction and BTS turned global fandom into billion-dollar commercial engines. The feature examines touring revenue, merchandising, and how management strategies evolved from the pop pipelines of the 2010s to today's K-pop model.

Filmmaker Mike Flanagan, known for horror series like The Fall of the House of Usher, has issued an update on his Warhammer 40,000 project, which he is developing with Games Workshop. Details of the update were not disclosed in available coverage, but the adaptation has drawn attention given Flanagan's fandom for the tabletop universe and his track record with major genre franchises.

A merchandise shop is offering personalized crewneck basketball jerseys themed on Usopp from One Piece, in an olive brown color scheme, with custom name and number printing for adults and kids. The product ties anime fandom with sports apparel, a growing niche in anime-themed clothing.

USC fans are weighing in on whether loyalty to the university's Trojan teams can substitute for devotion to professional franchises. The argument making the rounds is that college pride and pro fandom occupy different places in a supporter's life, and one does not cancel out the other. The debate is drawing mixed reactions from sports fans comparing allegiances across collegiate and professional levels.

Archive of Our Own, the major nonprofit fanfiction site, went offline, leaving millions of readers and writers unable to access their stories. Coverage described fans entering 'survival mode' as they scrambled for cached copies, swapped recommendations elsewhere, and debated the disruption across social media. The archive is a central hub for fan-created fiction, so even short outages ripple widely through online fandom communities.

Rent rewards company Bilt has acquired sports loyalty platform Lava, marking its entry into the sports market. The deal, reported by Sports Business Journal, gives Bilt technology to build fan rewards programs with teams and leagues. Bilt, known for letting renters earn points on housing payments, now aims to extend its rewards model to sports fandom.

Bilt has acquired sports loyalty technology company LAVA in a $300 million deal, marking a significant push beyond its core rent-rewards and housing business. The acquisition gives Bilt technology for sports fan loyalty programs, an area it has already explored through partnerships with leagues and teams. Observers see the move as a sign the rewards company is broadening its ambitions into live entertainment and sports fandom.

A new book review of Sledge Vs. The Wendigo has been published by Fandom Pulse, covering the horror story that pits a character named Sledge against the legendary Wendigo creature. Little else is known about the book's plot, author or reception beyond the review itself, so the scope of the discussion remains limited.