NFL programming will be on Cartoon Network this season, marking the first time any Turner network has carried league programming since TNT stopped carrying live games in 1997.
Cartoon Network signed up as the exclusive promotional partner for the league’s “NFL Play 60 Super Bowl Contest,” which promotes daily exercise to kids.
The NFL said Cartoon Network’s ability to reach the 6- to 13-year-old demographic made it a natural partner for the campaign, which encourages kids to exercise more.
“All of our research points to the importance of connecting with kids and having their first point of contact with the league occur in elementary school,” said Peter O’Reilly, the NFL’s vice president for fan strategy and marketing. “That makes them much more likely to be a more passionate fan.”
Cartoon Network will promote the contest throughout the season on its cable channel and Web site. A sweepstakes is open to kids who pledge to be active for 60 minutes a day, and they can enter at NFLRush.com through Dec. 9. The grand prize winner gets a trip for four to Super Bowl XLIV and will hand the game ball to an official just before the start of the title game in Miami on Feb 7. A panel of NFL players, including Saints quarterback Drew Brees, will select the winner, based on children who can point to specific ways that being healthy and active has helped their lives.
As part of the deal, the cable channel will profile the contest winner.
More than 20,000 kids registered for last year’s sweepstakes, which was run with Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes. O’Reilly expects the Cartoon Network deal to help it reach many more kids.
“Over the past few years, we made the effort to bring the NFL to kids instead of expecting them to come to us,” O’Reilly said.
