With both a retro Super Bowl licensing program and the NFL’s 50th Super Bowl celebration to fuel sales, the league is eyeing record sales to mark the golden anniversary of its championship game.
“No matter who plays in Super Bowl 50, we’d be disappointed if it’s not our biggest Super Bowl [sales] year,” said Leo Kane, NFL senior vice president of consumer products. “With two programs, there will be more generic merchandise than ever, and we haven’t been in the San Francisco market for 30 years (Super Bowl XIX in Palo Alto), and it’s a great market for us.”
Kane is also looking for record sales at the
massive NFL Experience being run by Aramark, and at Levi’s Stadium, where Legends has the Super Bowl merchandise concession assignment for the first time.
In market now is the “Super Bowl On The Fifty” program, an homage to past NFL champions, including commemorative hard-goods and other products linking to the Super Bowl rematches included in this season’s schedule.
The gold used to demarcate 50-yard lines on NFL fields will also be a recurring theme in products this year, some of which will be seen on NFL sidelines starting around Week 6 or 7 of the regular season and available at retail later this month, with more around the holidays.
Kane said the league will work with a number of San Francisco department stores, including Nordstrom, Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s.
Outside of Super Bowl items, women’s apparel, domestic products focused on the “homegating” trend, and a push into lifestyle apparel continue as key areas for NFL licensees.
“We’re still strong across categories, but the idea is to get people to wear licensed apparel more days of the week and in different settings,” said Chris Halpin, NFL senior vice president, licensing and consumer products.
