THE DAILY presents a comprehensive list of the official corporate partners of the NFL for the '16 season. NFL corporate partnership benefits vary from deal to deal, but they typically include category exclusivity, use of league marks for advertising and promotional purposes, event signage, media exposure through radio, print and TV ads, as well as various hospitality benefits. The group below does not include media partners, nor News America's Super Bowl FSI deal (THE DAILY).
| SPONSOR |
CATEGORY |
SINCE
|
| Gatorade (PepsiCo) |
Sports nutrition |
'83
|
| EA Sports |
Video games |
'93
|
| Visa |
Payment systems services |
'95
|
| Campbell’s Soup |
Soup |
'98
|
| FedEx |
Package delivery services |
'00
|
| Frito-Lay (PepsiCo) |
Salted snacks/popcorn/peanuts/dips/salsa |
'00
|
Snickers/Skittles/M&M's
(Mars Snackfoods) |
Chocolate/non-chocolate confectionery |
'02
|
| Pepsi (PepsiCo) |
Soft drinks |
'02
|
| Dairy Management Inc. |
Dairy products (milk/yogurt/cheese) |
'03
|
| SiriusXM |
Satellite radio |
'04
|
| Bridgestone |
Automotive tires |
'07
|
| TicketMaster |
TicketExchange |
'08
|
Gillette/Head & Shoulders/Vicks/Old Spice
(Procter & Gamble) |
Health/beauty/household products brands |
'09
|
| Verizon |
Wireless telecommunication service |
'10
|
| Barclays |
Affinity card/rewards program |
'10
|
| Papa John’s |
Pizza |
'10
|
| Under Armour |
Footwear/glove provider, Combine sponsor |
'10
|
| Castrol |
Motor oil |
'10
|
| Anheuser-Busch |
Beer |
'11
|
| USAA* |
Insurance/military appreciation |
'11
|
| Bose |
Home theater system, headsets, headphones |
'11
|
| Courtyard by Marriott |
Hotel |
'11
|
| Xbox, Surface, Windows (Microsoft)** |
Tablets, operating systems, game consoles,
interactive video entertainment consoles |
'11
|
| Quaker Oats (PepsiCo) |
Hot cereal, granola bars |
'12
|
| New Era |
Hats |
'12
|
| Nike |
On-field apparel, footwear, gloves |
'12
|
| Duracell (Procter & Gamble) |
Batteries |
'12
|
| Tide (Procter & Gamble) |
Household cleaning |
'12
|
| McDonald's |
QSR |
'12
|
| SAP |
Business software solutions, cloud software solutions,
business analytics software |
'12
|
| CoverGirl (Procter & Gamble) |
Beauty |
'13
|
| Zebra Technologies |
Real time location solutions, on-field player tracking |
'14
|
| TD Ameritrade |
Investment services, wealth management |
'14
|
| Extreme Networks |
Wi-Fi analytics, network solutions |
'14
|
| Nationwide Insurance* |
Insurance |
'14
|
| Hyundai |
Auto |
'15
|
| Dannon |
Yogurt |
'15
|
| Ford |
Truck partner |
'16
|
| |
|
|
CHART NOTES: * = Nationwide and USAA have co-exclusivity in the auto/home/life insurance category. ** = Deals for Surface and Windows was signed in '13.
AUTO DETAIL: AD AGE noted Hyundai's "reign as the NFL's only automotive sponsor" ended yesterday when Ford announced a
three-year deal as the league's official truck. Hyundai's four-year deal began last year. Splitting categories into two is "unique, but not unprecedented" in pro sports. While Hyundai sells crossovers and SUVs, it "does not sell trucks, making the NFL's deal with Ford a little less threatening." A Hyundai spokesperson said that the automaker has "known there would be a truck sponsor since day one" (
ADAGE.com, 9/7). CNBC's Joe Kernen said "trucks and the NFL go hand-in-hand." Kernen: "How many truck commercials do you see every game? There's something about it that just makes sense." Ford VP/U.S. Marketing, Sales & Service Mark LaNeve said, "America's biggest sport matches up directly with our demographic" (
"Squawk Box," CNBC, 9/7). In Louisville, David Mann noted the partnership was slated to "kick off in New York, where Ford is providing fans the opportunity to order Ford 'tailgate trucks' on demand through Uber." These trucks, which will be Super Duty models, will "deliver tailgating food, game tickets and merchandise." There also will be a sweepstakes for a "pair of Super Bowl tickets and a new 2017 F-Series Super Duty truck customized with the winner's favorite team colors" (
BIZJOURNALS.com, 9/7).
THE RUBBER MEETS THE ROAD: Bridgestone is capitalizing on its status as the official tire of both the NFL and NHL with a new campaign featuring Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald and Predators D P.K. Subban. In a commercial titled "Go Long", Fitzgerald explains the benefits of the Bridgestone Dueler H/L Alenza Plus tire. Fitzgerald goes long to show the long-lasting durability of the tire (
Bridgestone).
