I have just discovered that the pin means 'sticky' , which means: " A sticky, or sticky topic, is displayed at the top of the Message index, and is generally identified by a thumbtack icon Sticky topic.png, or some other distinctive formatting. Sticky is used to call attention to rules or important information that should not get displaced by newer topics from the first page of the message index."
OK, but I'm still not sure why Premier League etc is so marked.
Having said that, it isn't the least bit important and while I am impressed that you are up and running at 5 am in the UK, please don't feel you need to pick this one up!