Is Facebook an essential part of being a sports fan?

Facebook is aware of the social aspect behind playing and watching sports. "You're just never a fan alone," Nick Grudin, Facebook director of media partnerships, recently said at the Sloan Sports Analytics Conference. The social network would love if the answer to the question in the headline was a resounding yes, according to ESPN:

This is why Facebook is now an essential part of being a sports fan, as Nick Grudin explained in his presentation at the Sloan Sports Analytics Conference entitled "Social Sports: Facebook and the Fan-Centric Experience."

NBA fans are most active on Facebook, with 7.6 million fans Facebook Likes, compared to just 2.6 million for the NFL, and less than a million for MLB. The NBA embraced Facebook before the other leagues, and is now reaping the benefits in traffic: the social network is the NBA's second referral source for traffic, which has increased nine times over compared to a year ago.

Right now, Facebook lets you buy a ticket to a game, support your favorite team or player without spending a dime, check into stadiums (only airports get more check-ins in the US), and most importantly, do so with people from all around the world, not just those at the local bar. Maybe the future of being a sports fan involves watching games, interviews, and other special events straight from Facebook itself.

As a huge soccer (football, to all those not in North America) fan, I can't say I use Facebook very much, though I may use it to communicate with friends to coordinate a place for watching an upcoming game. Grudin believes that the next major revolution in sports will involve Facebook and fan interaction to connect in "fundamentally new ways." Do you use Facebook when you have your sports fan cap on, and if you do, what do you want to see the social network add to the sports arena?