Sport has the capacity to intimately engage fans, deliver intensely emotional experiences, and create attachments to athletes and teams. This connection can be threatened by a number of actions or incidents, including scandals, and fans may engage in a range of behaviors to protect their identification. The purpose of this study is to explore and explicate the concept of fan empathy and illuminate the processes that fans engage in that lead to an empathetic response. Using data from online discussion forums and in-depth interviews, the authors examined empathy in the context of athlete misbehavior and indiscretions. Results provide evidence for the concept of fan empathy as both a cognitive and emotionally focused response, extending the current knowledge of fan behavior. Further, the findings reveal five sensemaking processes that facilitate an empathetic response in the context of inappropriate athlete behavior. This research has implications for sport managers seeking to manage and maintain relationships with fans, including in the face of actions or behavior that might threaten fan identification and association with the sport entity.

运动有能力与球迷密切互动，提供强烈的情感体验，并与运动员和团队建立依恋关系。这种联系可能会受到包括丑闻在内的许多行为或事件的威胁，并且粉丝可能会采取一系列行为来保护自己的身份。这项研究的目的是探索和阐释粉丝同情的概念，并阐明粉丝参与导致同情反应的过程。利用在线讨论论坛和深入访谈中的数据，作者在运动员行为不端和轻率行为的背景下检验了同理心。结果为粉丝同理的概念提供了证据，它既是认知上的反应，也是情感上集中的反应，扩展了当前对粉丝行为的认识。进一步，研究结果揭示了五个有意义的过程，这些过程有助于在运动员行为不当的情况下进行共情反应。这项研究对体育管理人员寻求管理和维持与球迷关系的意义，包括面对可能威胁到球迷识别和与体育实体联系的行为或行为。