Get marketing news you’ll actually want to read
Marketing Brew informs marketing pros of the latest on brand strategy, social media, and ad tech via our weekday newsletter, virtual events, marketing conferences, and digital guides.
Sony is gearing up for fall football—literally.
The headphones and device-maker and the NFL have struck up a wide-ranging tech partnership, the companies announced this week.
As part of the deal, Sony will be an official technology partner of the NFL, and the league’s official headphones partner. Sony technology will be integrated into NFL games, including its Hawk-Eye tracking technology to support officiating, new sideline technology, and the integration of its imaging ecosystem and its Beyond Sports visualization tech.
And during the 2025 season, Sony will roll out headphones for NFL coaches to wear on the sidelines.
While Sony was tight-lipped about the marketing strategy for the partnership, Sony and NFL execs told Marketing Brew that paid and organic partnerships with influencers will factor into the marketing of the new arrangement. As part of the deal, the company has already created content with NFL athletes Jordan Love, Kyle Hamilton, Jahmyr Gibbs, and Brandon Aiyuk showcasing Sony headphones.
“Sports for Sony is a big opportunity,” Matthew Parnell, senior director, head of brand and community marketing, and imaging solutions at Sony Electronics North America, told Marketing Brew.
Gizmos and gadgets
Sony is no stranger to the NFL: Sony products and tech are already used in a number of NFL stadiums, and the NFL Network’s studio in Inglewood, California, where many of its shows are produced, has integrated the company’s technology extensively. Sony cameras are also used by NFL broadcasters like CBS and ESPN.
The new partnership will bring Sony’s support of the NFL to the forefront, making it more visible to viewers and customers.
“Since Sony was already working with us on all of these different areas, it made sense to take this partnership to the next level and make it more consumer-facing and make it more part of all of our marketing,” Tracie Rodburg, SVP of global partnership at the NFL, said.
It also marks a return to the NFL having an official headphone brand, after a deal with Bose lapsed in 2022.
Sony has been pushing into the sports space as a way to highlight its technological chops. In January, it signed an agreement with World Athletics to sponsor events from 2024 to 2026, like the World Athletics Indoor Championships Glasgow 24, with the deal highlighting Sony cameras and Hawk-Eye tech. Last year, Sony inked a deal with the NBA to use Hawk-Eye during games.
Tech companies have long flocked to sports to brand-build. Last year, IBM and ESPN announced an integration of IBM Watsonx AI tech into the sports giant’s fantasy football offerings, and for decades, IBM has worked with the United States Tennis Association and supported the US Open. Dell, which partners with the PGA Tour and McLaren Racing, also has collegiate partnerships with the Texas Longhorns and Purdue University.
Read the full article here
