Sports Marketing Nfl America’s Game

Fabian Luna

Sports Marketing

NFL

1. Discuss the factors that have resulted in the NFL becoming “America’s Game” and the most popular sport in the country?

The creation of “Football Sunday”, was first started by Pete Rozelle and it played the main role in making the NFL/football the most popular sport in the country. He focused heavily on Sunday afternoons for televising it since Sunday afternoons were considered undesirable time slots within networks. He marketed it heavily as Football Sunday Another factor is the Superbowl which gets millions of viewers, is heavily marketed, and pulls in high star power performers to help bring in viewers.

2. Explain the dynamics behind the competitive balance in the NFL versus other U.S. based properties as well as other leagues globally.

The balance is maintained by with most of the revenue being equally distributed between all the teams, The national revenue is split equally between teams at the end of the year, however the gate revenue is shared between the visiting and home teams. Supplemental revenue sharing is also a big part of it where teams with a high local income transfer part to teams with a lower local income. The extent of revenue sharing in conjunction with the limits put on the salary that players can be paid all contribute to the competitive balance. This is a big contrast from the UEFA or FIFA soccer leagues where revenue is not distributed throughout the league. The dynamic behind the NFL’s competitive balance also differs from the WTA or ATP tennis associations in which there isn’t really a league rather than an organization.

3. Discuss Peter O’Reilly’s marketing/brand strategy discussed in the case along with Alex and Matt’s comments in class. What do you think has made it successful and offer other ideas on how the NFL can more effectively build the NFL brand and continue to grow its fan base?

Peter O’Reilly made the NFL into a lifestyle, evoking visceral meanings for the fans and creating a marketing strategy around it that would solidify it as a sports titan. He created an intense, meaningful, and undying fanbase that elevated football from a generic sports brand into a complete way of life for people. Through personal ties and experiences he created an intergenerational marketing strategy that is going to be able to keep the “brand” alive for years to come.

4. What is the NFL Blackout Policy (which has recently received some government attention) and what is your opinion of it? Good or bad idea and Why?

The blackout policy of the NFL states that certain games cannot be aired within a certain radius (75 miles) if the game was not sold out 72 hours in advance. This allows around 1-3 games to be “blacked out” and give the local revenue sales an increase.

5. How has Brian Rolapp and his group transformed the NFL from a “sports property” into a “media company”? (Discuss the difference between the two in your answer)

He took over managing NFL.com and created a conglomerate in the sports media sector. Through it he was able to better market the teams, the league and create a higher revenue stream. He created a tighter media control over digital platforms that helped him monetize the league and the teams. The key difference is that the NFL is focusing on generating their revenue through media mediums and content rather than the game itself.

6. What is the distinction between a sponsorship deal and a content licensing deal and how does the wireless category bridge both versus the insurance category?

A sponsorship deal does not give them rights to the specific product or brand whereas the licensing deal allows companies to offer exclusive opportunities to give content through their own digital platforms. The wireless category is the grey area of this because let's say Verizon is the “official partner of the NFL” it can offer exclusive content through their mobile service giving the best of both worlds to the league and the teams.  

7. In your opinion, what is the best option for Rolapp to pursue regarding the NFL Mobile strategy? What are the advantages and disadvantages to the strategy you recommend to ownership?