How To Sell Your Schedule Release for Top Dollar

👋 Welcome back to Sponcon Sports, a weekly newsletter dedicated to sponsored content strategy in the sports industry!

I'm back on the East Coast this week after an incredible experience at #SportsSummit24.

The Gondola team set a high bar in their first year, and as expected, I highly recommend attending next year.

I learned so much from the sessions, but the highlight was meeting so many talented and welcoming sports professionals (and subscribers!) in person.

Seeing people’s faces > their social avatars.

Speaking of the conference, I’m sharing my presentation from the Summit.

Refer one person to Sponcon Sports, and you'll receive the slides I shared in Denver. Details are at the bottom of the newsletter.

In Today’s Edition:

• Top Tips to Sell Schedule Release 📆 

• MLB Breaks Format In Sponcon Wins ⚾️ 

• Two Atlanta United Series Names Worth Stealing 🚂 

🏊️ DEEP DIVE
Unlock Maximum Value From Schedule Releases

As we mentioned two weeks ago, NFL Schedule Release is a key event in the league’s offseason.

While the NFL Draft is the marquee event from a fan and broadcast perspective, Schedule Release is the Super Bowl for content teams (aside from the actual Super Bowl).

Iconic videos come out of this moment in time.

Think of the Chargers' Anime Schedule Release videos from 2022 and 2023, the Carolina Panthers’ Video Game concept from 2019, and last season’s darling, the Tennessee Titans' Broadway interviews.

Just the hero video alone can generate significant results and a high potential for earned media.

When you add all the complementary assets (teases, schedule graphics, wallpapers, sweepstakes, etc.), you have a sponsorship asset easily worth six figures.

However, selling Schedule Release at its true value is not as easy as you might think.

So, why is it such a tough sell?

Short Activation Window

Schedule Release lasts about three days: a tease day, a release day, and a leftovers day (bonus content). Most of the action happens on release day.

While the performance of a Schedule Release video and its accompanying assets can be amazing, it’s hard to justify a six-figure spend for one big day in the offseason.

Limited Integration

There isn’t a strong history of partner integration in Schedule Release videos.

Let’s take a look at this year:

• While every team had a sponsored element of Schedule Release, 22 teams (69%) included a partner in their hero video.

• Only five of those 22 teams (23%) had the brand integrated into the video. Note: this doesn’t include teams that showed logos via an overlay.

• Even when a sponsor was included in a hero video, tagging and logo inclusion were not guaranteed.

To be fair, the videos are produced on a tight turnaround time, so an early commitment is needed to get more creative with sponsor integration.

Also, we don’t know how much each brand spent with each team and whether it justified stronger integration into these videos.

Saturated Upsell Market

If you’re approaching the end of the regular season and this asset isn’t already sold, you’re likely looking to upsell current partners for a Schedule Release sponsorship.

The challenge is there may be many other upsell opportunities you’re also trying to fund in the offseason: the Combine, Free Agency, the Draft, Summer League, Rookie Camp, OTA’s, and Training Camp.

And let’s not forget about the Playoffs, which makes offseason upsells even tougher.

Depending on your team’s fiscal year, current partner budgets could be largely depleted when off-season upsells come around, limiting the potential for getting the true value of Schedule Release.

So, how do we sell Schedule Release to align revenue with its true value?

Schedule Release Sales Strategy

The key to success is to sell Schedule Release in the offseason prior to its activation.

NFL teams without a sponsor on this asset should be trying to sell it now for 2025.

While the best way to maximize revenue is to target new business, once the fiscal year turns over, there could be great opportunities to sell Schedule Release to a current partner.

That said, selling an asset nearly a year in advance with a short activation window makes brands hesitant to commit.

We have to turn this singular moment into a larger campaign.

Think of how the Carolina Panthers created “Building The Team with Lowe’s”, tying the brand to team transactions year-round (Draft, Free Agency, Extensions).

My favorite assets to pair with Schedule Release are:

• Countdown to the regular season graphics

• Monthly or Weekly schedule look-ahead posts

• Up Next Posts (see sponsored content of the week)

• Schedule Update Graphics (game date or time changes and announcements)

• Presenting sponsorship of monthly matchup emails

• Website and App Schedule Page presenting sponsorship (clickable logo on the page and/or a takeover with 100% share of voice on the page)

• Branded widgets within schedule pages (where applicable)

• Schedule Sweepstakes – whether you’re asking fans to predict the schedule or vote on their favorite matchups of the season, the goal is to generate leads for your partner and personalize your CRM remarketing by understanding what games fans want to see.

To be clear, these assets should not be bundled together as added value. While this will increase the overall price of the package, it creates a larger platform that gives a brand year-round presence with the team, a variety of full-funnel tactics, and a stronger connection to Schedule Release.

The result is a cohesive offering that makes the higher price tag for Schedule Release much more appealing.

But wait! What do I do if we miss the offseason window to sell the Schedule Release platform?

First, meet with your content team to understand three key things:

1. What is the planned total spend on Schedule Release?

2. Is there an idea already in mind? Likely not, but it's worth asking for potential category alignment.

3. What’s the deadline for integrating a partner into the video beyond a simple logo slap?

Once you have this information, meet with your partnership activation team to re-brief them on the opportunity.

My new goal is typically to make a 50% margin on Schedule Release. That’s why it’s important to know the costs of the asset(s).

If there’s still no interest by the integration deadline, shift to cost-covering mode. Aim to generate at least enough revenue to cover costs. Everything beyond that is a bonus.

This approach supports your content team and helps them preserve their budget for future initiatives throughout the year.

Notes From 2024’s NFL Schedule Release

Here are some of my observations about trends from this year’s Schedule Release.

The most prominent brands included in Schedule Release were Ticketmaster and SeatGeek.

Ticketmaster was a sponsor of 17 teams’ Schedule Releases, nine of which included the brand in the hero video.

SeatGeek sponsored six teams’ Schedule Releases.

The second most prominent category was the travel category. Four of the seven teams that included a travel partner did so with airline brands.

My favorite partner integrations came from the New England Patriots and the Washington Commanders. Dunkin cups, Pepsi cans, and a Toyota truck appeared in the Pats’ Good Will Hunting video. Meanwhile, a SeatGeek-branded napkin remained on screen throughout the Commanders’ Cake or Not Cake video.

Eleven teams produced B-side or secondary versions of a Schedule Release video. The Titans famously did this last year and it greatly outperformed the team’s hero video. Ironically, Tennessee was not one of the 11 teams to produce a B-side Schedule Release video in 2024.

Two teams (Los Angeles Rams and Jacksonville Jaguars) created Schedule Release videos for their international marketing territories. This is something I expect to increase next season just as we saw increased attention on international markets in the NFL Draft. It’s an outstanding opportunity sponsored or unsponsored to connect with those audiences.

Two teams created Schedule Release videos for alternate team accounts (Kansas City Chiefs Cheerleading and Seattle Seahawks Mascot).

Speaking of the Seahawks, keep your eye on the win glasses featured in their Schedule Release hero video. We may see them reappear in the regular season.

Two teams included their Schedule Release sponsors in their X and Facebook cover photos (Baltimore Ravens and Detroit Lions).

Three teams extended their Schedule Release videos past the credits (Ravens, Seahawks, Jaguars). The Jags used the moment to announce that throwback jerseys were coming back.

The Chicago Bears provided talent with social assets to help tease their Mean Girls concept. This is something we did when I worked on the McDonald’s All American Games account (with Golin in 2020). I highly recommend including this tactic for additional awareness around your Schedule Release video.

At least two teams (Jaguars and Las Vegas Raiders) built a homepage takeover for their website. This should be a must for every team moving forward.

💼 CASE STUDY
Sponsored Content of the Week

Two sponsored posts on MLB social channels caught my eye this week by breaking their typical formats.

Major League Vibes presented by Corona features players’ personalities through celebratory moments on the field.

This season, broadcast clips have been used all but once for this series.

That one time was last Thursday when MLB switched things up courtesy of their Live Content Correspondent Program.

This post was both shot and activated in a new way, keeping the sponcon series fresh.

Denis Kennedy captured this Alec Bohm RBI single with a tracking shot from the concourse level of Citizens Bank Park.

My favorite part was how this technique showcases the vibes of the stadium and the fans, breaking away from only focusing on player and team reactions.

I would love to see more teams and leagues utilize reaction shots from high angles (Go Pro setup?), particularly when the crowd pops for sponsored content.

It’s an outstanding opportunity that can be customized across categories. Here are a few examples:

• Electric Moments - Technology Category

• Sound of Victory - Audio Category

• Winning Vibes - Beer Category

• [Insert Name] celebrated with - Spirits Category

This post generated 152K views and 1.6K engagements on X.

Meanwhile, Statcast powered by Google Cloud features analytical video breakdowns of plays on the field along with various stat graphics.

I’m a fan of this series because it taps into the growing intelligence of fans due to the increased accessibility of statistics.

This particular example stands out as the first time this season a post focused on a fan, and rightfully so. A Seattle Mariners fan caught two foul balls in a row!

I appreciate how the Google Cloud data enhances the video. For the first foul ball, a stat compares the catch probability to the fan average (30% vs. 5%), which is both cool and funny to know it’s being tracked.

For the second foul ball, you can see not only the incredible odds of the moment (0.0001%) but also the playful tone of the text in the graphic (“Are You Kidding Me”).

Just because we're using analytics doesn’t mean you can’t have fun with it. In fact, MLB has used this series two other times this season to highlight some hilarious on-field hijinks:

• Ceddanne Rafaela vs Beach Ball

• Sausage Race Near Collision

The Foul Ball Statcast post was published on Facebook and X, generating over 2.7M views and 43K engagements.

The Takeaway

Both Major League Vibes and Statcast are strong sponsored content series. For high-frequency series like these, flexibility in activation creates opportunities to keep things fresh and appeal to a broader audience of baseball fans, not just those of a single team.

As long as you meet the contractual elements of a sponsored content series, don't be afraid to experiment. Testing and learning can help evolve the concept and potentially lead to better performance for both you and your partner.

🔍 SPONCONSPIRATION
Steal These Ideas

More teams could be leaning into Good Night and Good Morning posts like the Dallas Stars - It’s perfect for the mattress and coffee/breakfast categories. Here’s a great example with 7-Eleven that’s tied to wins.

This B-side Schedule Release concept from the Las Vegas Raiders would work very well with a communication-focused company like Grammarly.

I LOVE this format from the Seattle Mariners and MLB’s @pitchersnation account. Very similar to the NBA’s Fantastic Finishes series I recommended for TikTok.

What an impressive edit by Arsenal for their adidas home kit reveal, focusing on the cannon, which is isolated from their crest for the first time since the 1989-1990 season.

Give me more content showing great players talking ball! You have to watch this TaylorMade Golf video with Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy, and Nelly Korda.

Let’s round things out with a double dip. Two great sponcon series names from Atlanta United FC. Here’s a classic for the QSR category and save this if you have a partner in the train category (you’d be surprised how many there are).

🚨 ICYMI
What To Watch For

WhatsApp Channel Idea: Ahead of UEFA EURO 2024, The Football Association launched a WhatsApp Channel called “Follow England Away” that will share key fan information, details from on-the-ground in Germany, and a few exclusives from inside camp. Could be a great opportunity for a travel partner [h/t Tom Biggs].

TikTok Sponcon Remix Tool: TikTok announced a sponsored content remix tool, Duet with Branded Mission, enabling brands to tap into native behaviors by inviting creators to Duet with their Branded Mission videos [h/t Lia Haberman].

TikTok = Instagram: A slider sticker has been spotted on TikTok, exactly like what’s offered on Instagram. I think it’s time more teams cross-post Instagram Story content to TikTok Stories. Curious if the engagement stickers work just as well [h/t Lia Haberman]. Meanwhile, Instagram is allegedly working on public Reels playlists [h/t Annie-Mai Hodge]. IMO a must-add to your Instagram strategy.

NHL x Marketing to Gen Z: NHL CMO Heidi Browning sat down with theScore to discuss their Gen Z marketing strategy. Some great nuggets in here [h/t Neil Horowitz].

Consider The Following: Some key stats coming out of YouTube’s annual Brandcast event. Every day, viewers watch more than 1 billion hours of YouTube content on TV screens. Plus, YouTube drives higher ROAS than traditional TV, paid social, and other online video [h/t The Publish Press].

Oh Baby: The Mariners are inviting expectant parents to take a swing at home plate following their game on Father’s Day for a chance to hit a baseball at T-Mobile Park, revealing the sex of their soon-to-be-born child. The special ticket offer also includes an on-field photo and a Mariners onesie courtesy of Virginia Mason Franciscan Health.