NBA sponsors are initializing activation plans with the league’s season tipping off this week.
Veteran NBA rights holders Anheuser-Busch (a sponsor since 1998) and State Farm (since 2010) were both close to announcing their sponsorship renewals last week. League officials refused to discuss those brands’ activation plans, though, along with those of new timepiece sponsor Tissot.
Pepsi, which replaces Coca-Cola as a league sponsor after 29 years, is putting its marketing weight behind its Mountain Dew brand. A TV ad for Mountain Dew Kickstart featuring Oklahoma City guard Russell Westbrook will debut on TNT’s opening-night doubleheader on Tuesday. At retail, there will be a million cases of Dew and Dew Code Red with Westbrook’s image on cans, along with Kickstart point-of-sale material tying in fellow PepsiCo brand Ruffles.
Kerry Tatlock, the NBA’s senior vice president of global marketing partnerships, said Pepsi has signed deals with 19 players, including Jeff Teague (Atlanta), Julius Randle (Los Angeles Lakers), Justise Winslow (Miami), Noah Vonleh (Portland), Danny Green (San Antonio) and C.J. McCollum (Portland). In addition to the player deals, Pepsi is leveraging in China with NBA packaging on its Master Kong ready-to-drink iced tea brand, and it’s supporting the new sponsorship with a three-on-three grassroots competition launching next spring.
Other NBA sponsors with new creative for opening week include Kia, which will use a spot for its Optima midsize sedan featuring Blake Griffin of the Los Angeles Clippers. This comes as Kia is again serving as title sponsor of the overarching NBA Tipoff platform.
The league will launch a new spot in its “This Is Why We Play’’ campaign.
The footwear brands will trumpet their new wares with TV and digital campaigns, as well. Under Armour is launching the Curry Two; Adidas will tout its D Rose 6 and J Wall 2 footwear; and Nike will push its new signature shoes for Kevin Durant and LeBron James.
In terms of on-site activation, TNT will host a live pregame broadcast from Pier 43 in San Francisco, across the bay from where the Golden State Warriors will host the New Orleans Pelicans in the second half of the network’s opening night doubleheader broadcast on Tuesday. Mountain Dew will sponsor a concert on the pier, while Samsung will push its Gear S2 connected watch and its Gear VR headsets on a half-court installation.
