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Brands understand that gaming is a powerful opportunity to cultivate the next generation of fans, but finding the right way to reach their target audience is easier said than done.
The NFL is doing its best to reach out to new audiences (see Taylor Swift) and gaming is a prime opportunity. For the last two seasons, the league has partnered with Enthusiast Gaming and its production partner WePlay Studios to build weekly original programming designed for fans at the intersection of gaming and sports.
NFL Tuesday Night Gaming features NFL players, past and present, playing games with fan-favorite personalities. Over the last season, teams captained by SypherPK, FaZe Swagg, Fusilie, QTCinderella, Symfuhny and eventual winner TypicalGamer competed in various games alongside current and former NFL players. Each week culminated in a 1v1 Madden match between an NFL Player and Madden personality, MMG.
The program has helped the NFL cultivate an audience on the platforms native to gamers, broadcasting its episodes on Twitch, YouTube and X. Viewership has grown over the course of Season two, with livestream and VOD impressions up 24%.
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Through this program, the NFL is planting the seeds to grow its visibility with the gaming community. But perhaps more importantly, the league and Enthusiast Gaming are giving brands a safe on-ramp to expand their own reach.
Why the NFL is creating original programming for gamers
NFL Tuesday Night Gaming was sparked by the pandemic. Like other sports leagues, the NFL saw gaming as a way to connect with fans when in-person interaction was limited. According to Erin Comella Flynn, NFL partnerships lead for Tuesday Night Gaming, the league sees the program as a long-term investment to connect with its next generation of fans where they are consuming content.
Additionally, NFL Tuesday Night Gaming is giving the league an opportunity to cultivate its own stars. The program gives current and former players an opportunity to build a personal brand as a gamer off the field. “One of our strategies is to showcase NFL players with their helmets off. The nature of the sport is they are on the field with their helmets on so NFL Tuesday Night Gaming provides a new perspective on your favorite players,” said Comella Flynn. “Historically, rock stars wanted to be NFL players, and NFL players wanted to be rock stars. Now, they all want to be content creators.”
Gamers are notoriously vocal, so reaching out to the audience in the right way is critical for brands. Enthusiast Gaming is positioning itself as a one-stop agency to help brands reach gamers in the right way. The publicly traded holding company has diversified its operations into esports, online media, gaming resource hubs, game development and more. By pooling these resources, Enthusiast has valuable ad inventory to reach a wide variety of players.
