Former FC Barcelona star, Gerard Piqué, recently launched an ambitious–and potentially groundbreaking–post-retirement project: Kings League Infojobs, a new seven-a-side, Spanish football league established in December 2022. Piqué selected 12 partners, called “presidents” (high-profile digital content creators and other former football athletes, including Iker Casillas and Kun Agüero), to build their own teams from the ground up–from creating names and logos to hiring management and technical staff.

One especially high-profile president, influencer Ibai Llanos–a Spanish internet celebrity and renowned esports caster known simply as “Ibai,” whose events hold worldwide streaming records–heads up league club Porcinos FC. The league is leveraging Llanos’ massive following (more than 9M on Instagram alone)–along with the followings of its other presidents–to grow its viewership.

This strategy is proving wildly successful so far. The Kings League has already drawn legions of viewers since its inaugural season kicked off on January 1, 2023, helped in part by an appearance by Brazilian football legend Ronaldinho in the 8th “journey” (weekly game day, in Kings League parlance, aka "matchday"). In January alone, the league racked up 238M views on TikTok, while the league’s Twitch account drew the platform’s highest average number of viewers worldwide the same month.

Kings League rules differ from traditional football regulations, with the goal of adding dynamism to the game via tactics including a tie-breaker penalty shootout, unlimited substitutions, and special "secret weapons” (detailed below).

Anyone who wants to play for the league–from influencers to athletes, and everyone in between–can apply by submitting an application and video. Kings League then selects 200 players and holds a draft, where presidents and their coaches make their picks.

Rules & Regulations

• Kings League matches are held every Sunday from 4:00pm-10:00pm Central European Time (CET), and span 40 minutes divided into two halves.
• At the conclusion of the 11-journey regular season–which lasts just 3 months–the eight best teams proceed to the playoffs, which will culminate in a Final Four on March 26 at Camp Nou (FC Barcelona Stadium).
• There are 2 seasons per year; May 2023 begins this year’s second season.
• Before every match, each coach chooses an envelope containing a “secret weapon” (arma secreta in Spanish) that provides a playing advantage, which can be used once per game. The 20 “secret weapon” cards include the following advantages, among others:
• Double goal (6): For 2 minutes, goals scored will count as two.
• Penalty from the center (4): A penalty kick from midfield–1-on-1 striker against the goalkeeper, with no rejection possible.
• Wild card (1): Can be used as a wild card to play any of the other cards.
• Piqué (1): Gerard Piqué will join the team as a player for that match.
• At the 18th minute of the first half, a “League Card” is drawn that changes the number of players on the field (1vs1, 2vs2, 3vs3, 4vs4, or 5vs5) for the half’s last two minutes.
• There are no draws; if teams are tied at the match’s end, a penalty shootout decides the winner.
• In the starting kickoff, both teams must be on their goals until the countdown ends, and then run to take the ball at midfield.

On May 6, the Kings League will launch Queens League Oysho, named for the Spanish clothing retailer that’s its title sponsor. A women’s league with the same rules and format, its debut–to be played in tandem with the Kings League’s second season, with games held on Saturday–will help to further fuel the momentum of women’s football worldwide. 

League Sponsors

Kings League sponsors activate during matches via rotating billboards, product placement, and halftime challenges, among other assets. Each team can also sign its own sponsors, whose logos can be placed on the players’ jersey sleeves and shorts. Along with the weekly journey recap, “AfterKings,” broadcast Mondays on YouTube and Twitch–the league’s streaming partner–team presidents can stream their games on their preferred platforms, showcasing team sponsors with a product placement or digital billboard/logo activation.

INFOJOBS: The Kings League’s exclusive naming partner and primary jersey patch partner of all 12 teams, Europe’s leading career network brand also sponsors KOI, the esports team cofounded by Ibai.

Simyo: Marking one of its first forays into sports sponsorships, the Spanish telecom company ranks among the league’s main sponsors, whose assets include the “Simyo MVP” award.  

McDonald’s: To promote McDelivery, its delivery services brand, McDonald’s sponsorships in Spain span sports including football (Mirandes), basketball (Cazoo Baskonia), and esports (Movistar Riders), as well as out-of-home advertising worldwide. Within the Kings League, the fast food titan sponsors event-related content including the countdown to matches’ kickoff, and runs a banner ad on Twitch, the league’s streaming partner.

Grefusa: The Spanish food products manufacturer ranks among the league’s main sponsors, and also sponsors its referees. Active in the streaming market, the snack brand also sponsors Ibai’s events, as well as Team Heretics, an esports team.

XiaoMI: An active sponsor of football properties–including the Mexican and Finnish national federations–as well as music festivals and esports teams, the Chinese consumer electronics manufacturer is one of the league’s main partners and its VAR (Instant Replay) sponsor. The brand’s logo also features on the back of all team jerseys.

CUPRA: The Spanish carmaker’s many sponsorships include the World Padel Tour, FC Barcelona, tennis events like the Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell, and KOI, Ibai’s esports club. As the Kings League Stadium Sponsor, the brand’s cars are displayed outside of CUPRA Arena, the league’s home.

Spotify: Hot on the heels of a landmark July 2022 deal with FC Barcelona that named the music streaming giant Main Partner and Official Audio Streaming Partner of the club–and saw the team’s stadium rebranded Spotify Camp Nou–the brand seized the opportunity to get in on the ground level of FC Barcelona alum Piqué’s newest venture, sponsoring the Kings League “secret weapon” cards.

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The National Football League will have its first-ever Christmas Day tripleheader this year.

Take a look at how the competing team's social game and sponsorship portfolio compare.

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Brands Spend a Record $461M in Sponsorships Across Major League Soccer Clubs in 2022.Technology and Utilities categories topped the sponsorship growth chart, accounting for 15% of new brand sponsors.

The MLS 2022 Marketing Partnerships Report analyzes 1,750 partnership deals across the league, clubs and athletes during the 2022 season. The report uncovered that $461 million in club sponsorship revenue was generated across 1,300 unique brands. The beverage-alcohol category and media brands topped the charts with the most active brands.

Key findings from the report include:

Sporting KC, Philadelphia Union and Austin FC attract nearly 100 brand deals eachAll three clubs exceeded 90 sponsorship deals for the 2022 season, eclipsing the league average of 62. Sporting KC leads in terms of deal volume, with new partners including Don Neron Tequila, Socios.com, Google Fiber, and Compass Minerals, its new front jersey partner. Austin FC quickly surpassed all other MLS clubs in terms of sponsorship category diversity in just its second season.

U.S. World Cup player DeAndre Yedlin of Inter Miami CF leads with the most new brand collaborations this yearReturning to the MLS this year after a 7-year hiatus, DeAndre Yedlin has inked five brand endorsements this season. Yedlin partnered with three league sponsors–Heineken, Audi, and DoorDash–in addition to Quaker State and Captain Morgan. LAFC player Giorgio Chiellini took the lead in endorsements with 18, and the number of branded social posts with 28.

Cryptocurrency and FinTech propelled Finance to the top of 2022’s list of most searched categoriesCrypto sponsorship deals within MLS quintupled to five from just one last year. Cryptocurrency was the most searched financial category within the SponsorUnited platform as more than 250 cryptocurrency brands worldwide were searched, with Coinbase, Crypto.com, and eToro leading the way.

International and domestic brands ramp up activations with MLSFor the 2022 season, MLS gained six new league partners: Avant, IHG, Socios.com, Sorare, Doordash and Caterpillar. Brands like the Japanese beverage company Asahi tapped into the North America market for the first time through MLS, in addition international brands including Volkswagen, Bermuda Tourism Authority, and Inter&Co. The five most active brands among the league and individual athletes include Heineken (785 social posts), Audi (658 posts), BodyArmour (618 posts), Bank of Montreal (403 posts) and Delta (390 posts).

“MLS continues to impress with its increasing popularity, game attendance, and sponsorships, propelling the league to be the fastest growing in the world,” said Bob Lynch, Founder and CEO of SponsorUnited. “It's clear to see how MLS franchise median value grew 5x more than other U.S. pro leagues through new investments made from companies like DoorDash, as well as continued support from brands like Adidas, who has been a league partner for the past 26 years. It’s an exciting time for MLS and I'm looking forward to seeing the continued momentum.”

Methodology:

This report was compiled using SponsorUnited’s proprietary platform data from January 15, 2022, through November 8, 2022. Social data compiled from property or person-controlled Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, and LinkedIn accounts and social activity.

The Winnipeg Blue Bomber's will take on the Toronto Argonauts at the Mosaic Stadium in Regina, Saskatchewan for the 109th Grey Cup.

Twitter is utilized the most for both teams. Not only do both sports teams have their highest social following on Twitter, but all social deals between both teams include Twitter posts. Canada Life was the most leveraged brand for the Winnipeg Blue Bomber's on Twitter, accumulating 74 posts and 20k+ engagements within the past year. Bell Media was leveraged the most for the Toronto Argonauts on Twitter, amassing 30 posts and 2.8k+ engagements in the past year.

The Winnipeg Blue Bomber's will take on the Toronto Argonauts at the Mosaic Stadium in Regina, Saskatchewan for the 109th Grey Cup.

Twitter is utilized the most for both teams. Not only do but both team's have their highest social following on Twitter, but all social deals between both teams include Twitter posts. Canada Life was the most leveraged brand for the Winnipeg Blue Bomber's on Twitter, accumulating 74 posts and 20k+ engagements with the team in the past year. Bell Media was leveraged the most for the Toronto Argonauts on Twitter, amassing 30 posts and for 2.8k+ engagements.

Leg 1 of the the Liga MX Final begins tomorrow as Toluca FC matches up against CF Pachuca in this final stage.

Toluca FC top sponsors: Roshfrans, Caliente Interactive, Corona (Anheuser-Busch), Under Armour, and Aeromexico.

CF Pachuca top sponsors: Telcel, Betcris, Corona (Anheuser-Busch), Cementos Fortaleza, and GRUPO CHARLY.

DOWNLOAD Women In Sports 2022HERE

The inaugural Women In Sports report was released last week and delivered an in-depth analysis of more than 350 athletes, 7.1K deals, and over 33K posts between leagues, teams, athletes, and brands from September 2021-September 2022.

Let’s take a deeper look at key category insights from the report.

Finance was the most active category in women’s leagues and teams, and the only one with over 300 total sponsorship deals. Not only did the category lead in partnerships, it also grew the most overall year over year, underscoring the burgeoning appeal of women's sports to the industry.

Mastercard, Ally Financial, CaixaBank, Deloitte, and BNP Paribas topped the list (in that order) with the most sponsorships. Ally Financial–which has pledged gender parity in sponsorship and media spending by 2027–was a particular standout: the company was the most active banking brand, and ranked fourth overall in the category.

Led by apparel giants Nike and adidas, Apparel & Accessories was the second most active category in the past year, with just over 260 sponsorships. Not only did Nike have the most deals in the category, the apparel brand also added the most partnerships–and was the most active brand of any category across the WNBA, the NWSL, and Australia’s Big Bash League.

Meanwhile, NFT brands only partnered with 1% of women’s leagues and teams, versus 26% of men’s. Socios.com was one of only three NFT brands with deals in women's sports, while the Minnesota Lynx and Valencia CF were the only teams with a sponsorship deal in the category.

Betting Services & DFS (Daily Fantasy Sports) inked deals with 11% of women’s leagues and teams, compared to 48% of men’s. Sorare, Caliente.mx, BetMGM,and FanDuel had multiple partnerships in women’s sports, but only 30 brands–just 6% of all active brands in the category– bought sponsorships or media deals.

While Beer boasts staple-category status in men’s sports–over 60% of men’s leagues and teams sold sponsorship or media deals with at least one beer brand in the past year–women’s leagues and teams have plenty of room to grow in the category, as only 25% of properties currently partner with beer brands. Michelob Ultra and Mahou led beer brands in sponsorship growth: the Anheuser-Busch-owned brand added seven domestic deals to its portfolio, while the Spanish brewing company inked its first deal with Liga F.

Explore more insights about women in sports at https://sponsorunited.com/.

The 2022/23 NBA season–the league’s 77th–tipped off on Tuesday with a marquee doubleheader. As fans gear up for a slew of exciting match-ups over the next six months, here’s a glimpse at how the league’s teams and players fared on social media during the offseason.

NBA teams stayed active with 3,187 sponsored posts across 366 deals since mid-June, engaging over 18.7M followers–an average of 51K per deal and 5.6K per post.

Top 5 offseason posts (by total engagement):

1. Bibigo x LA Lakers - 526K

1. UCLA Mattel Children's x LA Lakers - 514K

1. Rakuten x Golden State Warriors - 333K

1. Oracle x Golden State Warriors - 227K

1. Coinbase x Chicago Bulls - 197K

The Lakers and the Warriors dominated social media during their time off, generating a combined 42% of the NBA's total engagement. The Lakers accounted for 20%, engaging 3.7M fans across 103 posts–40 of which were with Korean food company Bibigo, the team’s jersey patch sponsor. Five of the NBA’s 10 most engaging posts were Lakers’ branded posts, 3 of which were with Bibigo.

Engaging 4.1M followers across 291 posts–192 with Oracle–the Warriors were responsible for 22% of the NBA’s social engagement since last season ended. The team averaged engagement of 415K per brand, eclipsing the Lakers’ 234K per partner. The Warriors’ offseason social activity with Oracle amassed over 1M more engagements than any other NBA partnership, due in large part to its plethora of posts.

NBA players were also busy on social media during the offseason, as Lebron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo proved why they’re among the four highest paid players in the league.

Top 5 NBA player offseason posts (by total engagement):

1. Lobos 1707 Tequila x Lebron James - 1.8M

1. Sports Illustrated x Lebron James - 1.121M

1. Brown & Brown Custom Clothiers x Giannis Antetokounmpo - 1.118M

1. Zion Williamson x Jordan Brand - 585K

1. RIMOWA x Lebron James - 579K

Athletes with supersize social media clout naturally command much bigger deals. Here are the NBA giants with the highest-earning endorsement portfolios, and some of their deep-pocketed brand partners.

Estimated NBA athlete endorsement portfolio earnings (Source: Sportico)

1. Lebron James - est. $75M
3. Cypto.com, GMC, Ruffles

1. Kevin Durant - est. $48M
3. NBA Top Shop, Weemaps, Nike

1. Steph Curry - est. $45M
3. Rakuten, FTX, Literati

1. Giannis Antetokounmpo - est. $44M
3. WhatsApp, Nike, Breitling

1. Russell Westbrook - est. $25M
3. Jordan Brand, Converse, Varo

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Congratulations to Karim Benzema and Alexia Putellas, the winners of this year’s Ballon d’Or (“Golden Ball”) Award, presented in Paris on October 17th. Nominees for the annual award recognizing the best player over the previous year–presented by French news magazine French Football since 1956–included 30 men’s and 20 women’s football players from around the world.

Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema–nicknamed “Karim the Dream”–was the favorite after winning the UEFA Nations League with France, the LaLiga title, the Spain Supercup, and the Champions League with Real Madrid, as well as the 2021/2022 UEFA Men’s Player of the Year. With 120M total followers, Benzema was the second most-followed Ballon d’Or nominee this year on social media. His partnerships with 6 brands–including adidas, Jean Paul Gaultier, Technogym, and Crypto.com–have generated 16M engagements and counting.

Alexia Putellas won the women’s Ballon d’Or Award for the second consecutive year, becoming the first female player to win the title twice. Her elite run has boosted her social following a whopping 330% year-over-year to 3M across Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok. The FC Barcelona midfielder takes the 5th spot among both male and female Ballon d’Or nominees in terms of brand partnerships, garnering more than 2.4M engagements across 18 branded posts.

With a staggering following of more than 740M, nominee Cristiano Ronaldo is the most popular person in the world on social media. He also leads the nominees in brand partnerships with 17, including LiveScore, Nike, Clear (Unilever), and CR7, his own underwear brand. With 18 nominations during his career–the most of any player–the Portuguese megastar has won 5 Ballon d’Or trophies, a feat surpassed only by Lionel Messi with 7 awards.

Alex Morgan tops the list of female players on social media with an audience of more than 20M–ranking her 15th among all Ballon d’Or nominees by total followers. With 27 deals, the San Diego Wave striker also partners with more brands than any other female athlete. Morgan’s most engaging branded post–on Instagram with Beat Everybody, the clothing brand she cofounded with fellow US Women’s National Soccer Team players Allie Long and Kelley O’Hara–has racked up 293K engagements since January.

One of the most anticipated games of the season takes place today in Santiago Bernabeu Stadium as Real Madrid and Barcelona meet in the first LaLiga Classico of the season.

Spotify, the primary jersey patch partner for Barcelona, has agreed to display an OVO Owl jersey patch in the game instead of their typical logo. The patch commemorates Canadian music artist Drake, who became the first artist with 50 billion streams on Spotify. The brand's partnership with FC Barcelona has more than 3X the total assets of any other deal. The partnership includes venue naming rights and social content that amassed over 1M total engagements.

The two powerhouse teams are the top two most followed teams in LaLiga, and have additionally each seen YoY follower growth over 10%. Check out the graphic below to learn more about these teams/athletes competing and their partnership portfolio.

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Alex Morgan is the Most Endorsed Female Athlete of 2022

Brand deals across women’s sports have increased 20% year-over-year

SponsorUnited's inaugural Women In Sports 2022 report analyzes brand partnerships for both collegiate and professional sports across teams and individual athletes.

The report found that 3,500 brands bought a total of 5,650 sponsorships or media across 14 professional women’s leagues and collegiate NIL athletes. It also revealed that 1,110 brands bought a total of 2,185 sponsorships or media across individual professional and college female athletes.

“While women’s sports have always faced a variety of disparities in the industry, their ability to win over audiences and drive an exceptionally high level of engagement for brands is undeniable,” said Bob Lynch, CEO and founder of SponsorUnited. “In recent years, attendance, viewership and social engagement for women’s sports and athletes has spiked, leading to long-overdue financial backing through investments and sponsorships that are visibly paying off and should only continue to accelerate.”

Key findings include:

Alex Morgan is the most endorsed female athlete of the yearThe National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) player scored 27 brand deals in 2022, which is more deals than any NFL, NBA, MLB, MLS or NHL athlete. Morgan leapfrogged over Ali Krieger, Serena Williams and Naomi Oasaka, the top three most endorsed female athletes in 2021. She has partnerships with Coca-Cola, Google, Chipotle, Michelob Ultra and AT&T, among others.

Partnership deals across women’s sports have increased 20% year-over-yearSponsorships with women grew 20% year-over-year across the major US sports (LPGA, NWSL, WNBA, WTA), top European soccer leagues (Women’s Super League and Liga F), and Big Bash League, AFL, NRL Telstra Premiership, Netball Superleague, Suncorp Super Netball and World Netball. Finance brands–which are already the most active sponsorship category among women’s sports–upped their sponsorship game by 30%, followed by Apparel & Accessories and Media to round out the top-three brand verticals.

Women’s golf outnumbers all other women’s sports for brand dealsWith 940 brand deals in 2022, the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) saw a 30% increase in deals from the previous year and an 18% increase in new brand partnerships. Notable partnerships include Coca-Cola, Rolex and Epson. The LPGA held a 17-deal lead over the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA), which had 923 deals in 2022, followed by the National Women’s Soccer League, which had 496 deals.

Nike is the #1 sponsor for both professional and collegiate sportsNike has sponsorships with the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), NWSL, Women’s Big Bash League (Cricket), Netball and the LPGA, and with more than 60 athletes. Nike also sponsors five collegiate athletes and partners with 68 colleges. Trailing Nike is Adidas, the second top brand partner for both professional and collegiate sports.

While the storied careers of Roger Federer and Serena Williams–two of the best tennis players in the sport’s history–have just come to an end, both athletes are primed to continue their successful sponsorship careers off the court.

With over 34M total followers each on social media, Williams is the most popular female tennis player across social media, while Federer’s following ranks second behind Rafael Nadal. Though both were wrapping up their careers, Williams’ followers increased 7% in the last 12 months, and Federer’s following grew by 3%. This year alone, Williams and Federer have 4 of the top 5 social posts (2 each) across pro tennis players, ranked by total engagement.

Both athletes will almost certainly continue to leverage their powerful social platforms for brand partnerships. Williams’ 19 deals–among them Gatorade, Nike, Ubrelvy, Audemars Piguet, and Berlei–include 65 social posts, with total engagement (likes/comments/shares) of over 6M, averaging more than 324K per brand and 82K per post. Since 2020, Williams’ sponsored posts have averaged a total engagement of over 11M per year.

Racket Sport athletes have seen a total social engagement of more than 80M this year. Over 550 brands currently utilize these athletes in campaigns, with each brand garnering average engagement of over 140K per campaign.

While Federer’s sponsored posts since 2020 have averaged a significantly lesser total engagement of 1.4M per year, he’s focused on other promotional avenues over social media. Federer–who has the most deals among men’s tennis players by a significant margin over Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray–has starred in more than 8 commercials or marketing campaigns with brands including Rolex, On-Running, Uniqlo, and Switzerland Tourism, amongst others.

Major League Rugby (MLR) wrapped up its fifth official season this summer, with Rugby New York taking home its first championship title. As the sport’s popularity steadily increases nationwide, let’s take a look at its burgeoning stable of sponsorships.

Over 380 brands are currently buying sponsorship or media within the MLR and its 13 teams.

Rugby New York currently has less than 10 sponsorship deals–but its league-topping performance this season means brands may soon be clamoring to sign new partnerships with the team as its profile–and the league’s own–continue to rise. Mainfreight, a global supply chain solutions provider, enjoyed prime exposure this season as Rugby New York’s primary jersey sponsor. One of Mainfreight’s tweets with the team was Rugby New York’s highest engaged tweet of the season, and the league’s third highest overall.

Unlike in other pro sports, Business Services tops the category list in terms of total MLR sponsorship deals: 25 brands have one deal each with a league team. TV-visible signage–including field-level sideline signage–is the most common asset purchased by these brands.

Across all categories, the top 10 brands ranked by number of sponsorship deals are:

• Paladin Sports

• Rhino Rugby

• Wintergreen

• American Airlines

• Guaranteed Rate

• USI Insurance

• The Rugby Network

• GEICO

• Opro

• PT SportSuite

All of the above have a deal with at least two MLR teams, and one with the league itself.

Meanwhile, 27% of the league’s primary jersey sponsorship deals are with Healthcare brands. The number of teams selling primary jersey sponsorships this season increased 37% over last year.

Goal post pads are another notable asset in companies’ crosshairs, with the number of brands buying this asset up 200% versus 2021. Equipment & apparel retailers Retailers Rhino Rugby and Rugby Now enjoyed exposure on all goal post pads during this season’s matches.

Emerging brands to watch within the league include Wintergreen and Rugby Now, with 4 and 3 new deals this year, respectively. Wintergreen became an official partner of MLR in May 2021, while Rugby Now inked a three-year partnership with the league last February.

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Kevin Harvick won his second-straight Cup on Sunday during the NASCAR's Richmond Fall Race.

Harvick partners with 12 brands, including deals with Xfinity,

Subway, Rheem Manufacturing, Campers Inn RV, and Busch Beer.

Congratulations to the Chicago Cubs who defeated the Cincinnati Reds in the second edition of MLB's Field of Dreams Game presented by Geico.

Most frequent brands seen on Fox Broadcast:

• GEICO

• T-Mobile

• Chevrolet

• Mattress Firm

• Jersey Mike's Subs

• Hyundai Motor America

Most frequent assets leveraged:

• Recorded Commercial

• Virtual Signage Projected in Lower Bowl

• Live Read Commercial

• 1st Base / 3rd Baseline Billboards

• Broadcast Ad / Logo Pop Up

* Venue assets under MLB property. Broadcast assets under MLB on FOX property

SponsorUnited was on the ground at the 2022 MLS All-Star Skills Challenge. Below are the top 3 most commonly seen brands during the Minneapolis-based event.

Event Activations:

AT&T

Old Spice

Bounty

ESPN Broadcast:

AT&T

GMC

Frontier Communications

Check out the graphic below to see how these brands activated during the event.

Three European Football Leagues begin their new season this week: English Premier League, Bundesliga, and Ligue 1.

Betway and Coca-Cola had dominant appearances on and off the pitch during the 2021-22 season. Which brands plan to make their mark this season?

To view more insights about European Football download our full report: https://sponsorunited.com/2021-22-european-football-partnerships/

The UEFA2022 Women's Euro–which wrapped up in London on Sunday–garnered record attendance across the entire tournament, doubling it from 2017 for a new record of nearly 575,000 spectators.

The final match–which saw England win its first-ever major women’s championship with a 2-1 victory over Germany–also set new records for attendance and broadcast viewership, with over 87,000 fans and 17.5 million viewers in the UK, respectively.

Fifteen brands leveraged the tournament’s unprecedented spotlight as sponsors, with visibility on social media and at the venues. Healthcare brand Grifols’ many sponsorship assets included signage on the video board, sponsored content via email, and social media posts of the tournament’s top scorer, Beth Mead.

Heineken had a unique opportunity as presenting sponsor of the pregame warm-up for some of the matches, which included a live DJ set.

As the presenting sponsor of the “player of the match” for all 31 games, VISA enjoyed prime positioning, with its logo front and center on the trophy. VISA also scored the most social posts with the UEFA Women’s Champions League with 72–nearly double those of second-place Heineken.

VISA’s social posts with the UEFA outnumbers all other brands in 2022, while Heineken scored the highest total engagement with the league, with 160,000 followers across 46 posts. Heineken also leads in highest average engagement per post, at over 3,000 followers.

VISA and Heineken also created campaigns celebrating women’s empowerment surrounding the tournament. Heineken launched a campaign in May that encourages fans of all genders to show their passion for women’s football. VISA’s campaign, unveiled last month across audio, digital, and print formats, leveraged the tagline, "When more of us play, all of us win," in homage to female athletes.

Leading sports collectibles company Upper Deck–an NHL partner since 1990–has brought its knack for innovative activations to its role as the title sponsor for the NHL Entry Draft, which begins today. The exclusive licensed manufacturer of NHL Trading Cards, the company is also keen to expand into the NFT space.

In keeping with its longtime strategy of boosting younger generations’ engagement with the NHL–both inside and outside the arena–Upper Deck has been drumming up excitement for the draft citywide since June 26th, when the Upper Deck truck began roaming Montreal’s streets. Free giveaways along its nine-stop route include 2022 draft exclusive 9-card player sheets, as well as mini posters of Shane Wright, Upper Deck ambassador and potential #1 draft pick. Fans were encouraged to post their truck pics on social media with the hashtag #CollectTheBest.

The fun continues inside the Bell Centre today, where Puck-O–a variation on Plinko–on the arena concourse offers kids the chance to win customized play mats, calendars, and other prizes with the purchase of one pack of Upper Deck hobby cards.

At NHL marquee events, card games–like “pack wars” to determine who has the most valuable card, and kids’ bingo with NHL mascots–have been another unique tactic for cultivating young fans. Upper Deck launched an online game during the Stanley Cup, when fans could win a free player pack by guessing the players’ identities from their descriptions.

The company was also the presenting sponsor of the Mascot Showdown at the 2022 All-Star Game, where team mascots faced off in competitions including dodgeball and broomball. Upper Deck was tagged in Instagram posts and featured with signage throughout the video along the boards of the rink.

To read more about the NHL partnerships this year, download our 2021-22 NHL Marketing & Partnerships Report .

Cause-related sponsorship campaigns in the NHL grew 23% this year over last–placing the league second only to the NFL in activating community/cause-related assets in professional sports. Following the recent release of SponsorUnited’s NHL 2021-2022 Marketing & Partnerships Annual Report, here’s a quick look at the biggest cause-related sponsorship takeaways this season.

More than 320+ brands activated NHL community/cause-related campaigns–led by Scotiabank, which launched multiple campaigns with the NHL and four Canadian teams (the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, Winnipeg Jets, and Edmonton Oilers). Other brands with the highest frequency of these campaigns were as follows:

1. TD Bank

1. EverFi

1. Ford Motor Company

1. Northwell Health

1. Bauer Hockey

1. Chase

1. SAP

1. adidas

1. Tim Hortons

1. Kaiser Permanente

1. Esso

1. Boeing

1. Budweiser

1. Stop & Shop

1. Dunkin'

1. National Grid

1. Love Your Melon

1. Toyota

1. BMO Harris Bank

Financial brands led all industries, overtaking Healthcare brands as the most active supporter of causes. Insurance, Technology, and Auto (in that order) rounded out the top-five industry categories, which alone contributed to almost half of all NHL cause-related sponsorship campaigns.

To learn more, check out the SponsorUnited NHL 2021-2022 Marketing & Partnerships Annual Report at https://sponsorunited.com/nhl-partnerships-report/.

DOWNLOAD REPORT: https://sponsorunited.com/nhl-2021-22-report/

Finance companies boost NHL team sponsorship revenue past the $1B mark for the first time in league history

The NHL 2021-22 Marketing & Partnerships Annual Report highlights trends in sponsorships surrounding the National Hockey League, teams, athletes, and media partners. Uncover data on over 3,300 NHL partnership deals and over 2,000 active brands buying sponsorships and media in the NHL.

Key findings from the report include:

• Finance companies boost NHL team sponsorship revenue past the $1B mark for the first time in league history.
• This jump is a 63% increase from the $623 million in the 2020-21 season.

• Cause-related sponsorship campaigns increased 23% year over year, with Finance brands overtaking Healthcare brands as the most active supporter of causes.On average, 10 brands activated against a cause (vs. 8 last season.)

• The seven Canadian teams had a higher average social following compared to the 23 US teams.Brands received 2x the engagement with US teams.

• The NHL league account posts more than any other pro sports league, in fact, 2x more than the NFL (second-most.)No team or player in the NHL has a larger social following than the league itself.

• Banking and Beer brands were the top spenders as marquee brands continued to increase spend this season.Beer companies more than doubled their spend with NHL teams which moved the Beverage (Alcoholic) category past Healthcare to #2.

Methodology

This report was compiled using SponsorUnited’s proprietary platform data from September 2021 through June 2022.

*Social Data Compiled from Property or Person-Controlled Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn Social Accounts and Activity.

Game 5 of the NHL Stanley Cups takes place tonight, as both the Tampa Bay Lightning and Colorado Avalanche look to take home the cup. The Finals feature different broadcasts for US and Canadian based fans, with ABC hosting the US coverage and SportsNet hosting Canadian coverage. Looking back at the first game of the series, what differences and similarities did we find between the brands and assets sponsoring the most important matchup of the NHL season?

SportsNet’s broadcast featured 46 unique brands. The top three most frequent brands and their assets during the Canadian coverage were:

• DraftKings (Gaming)

• Logo in Broadcast Studio

• Live Read Commercial

• Sponsored Segment

• Split Screen Commercial

• Recorded Commercial (3)

​​On Canadian broadcasts, the gaming category ranked 3rd. Didn’t crack the top 10 for US broadcasts. Reasoning would logically be legalization of single-game gambling in Canada this past August before the season started.

• Scotiabank (Banking)

• Period Naming Rights (Presenting Sponsor)

• Live Read Commercial

• Logo Pop Up

• Recorded Commercial (3)

• SkipTheDishes (On-Demand Delivery)

• Sponsored Segment

• Live Read Commercial

• Recorded Commercial (2)

ABC’s broadcast featured 61 unique brands. The three most prominent brands from the US coverage were as follows:

• Lexus (Luxury Car Manufacturer)

• Intermission Report Naming Rights (Presenting Sponsor)

• Logo in Studio

• Live Read Commercial

• Recorded Commercial (4)

• GEICO (Insurance

• Presenting Sponsor of the 2022 Stanley Cup Finals

• Live Read Commercial

• Logo Pop up

• Recorded Commercial (3)

• Verizon (Telecommunications)

• Pregame Naming Rights (Presenting Sponsor)

• Logo in Studio

• Recorded Commercial (3)

The CHL's 2022 Memorial Cup began this week, a four-team round-robin tournament held at TD Station.

We highlight the sponsorship and media activity of the four competing teams during the nine day tournament.

Download Now: https://sponsorunited.com/2021-22-european-football-partnerships/

The first international sponsorship and marketing report focused on European football.

The 2021-22 European Football Partnerships Report is fortified by data from over 7,000 brands across more than 9,000 deals and from 10 of the top European football leagues (Premier League, LaLiga, Serie A, Bundesliga and Ligue 1, along with each league’s corresponding second tier.) This report also contains growth and engagement insights on over 2,750 brands that created collaborative social media content.

Key findings from the report include:

• Construction is the most active sponsorship category for the third consecutive season across European football leagues.

• While Betting deals have declined by 10%, Crypto deals have grown an impressive 140% this season.

• The most searched brands by European football club executives were Crypto.com, FTX, DraftKings, Verizon and Dunkin’.

• Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi now officially have over 1B followers combined due in part to joining new clubs.

• Transferring teams can offer a huge boost in social following for players.

This report was compiled using SponsorUnited’s proprietary platform data from July 2021 through May 2022. Social data compiled from property or person-controlled Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok and LinkedIn accounts and social activity. The leagues included in this report are as follows: Premier League, LaLiga, Serie A, Bundesliga, Ligue 1, EFL Championship, LaLiga 2, Serie B, 2. Bundesliga, Ligue 2.

We are quickly approaching 50 years since Title IX forever changed the game for girls and women in sports. Not only that, but next month marks 1 year for NIL endorsement deals for NCAA. While women in college sports have made strides on the field, they have also had success off with brands seeking their partnership and chance to leverage their social following.

Lauren Burke of the Longhorns might have lost the World Series title, but she’s a winner in terms of number of deals. Burke has 16 deals which leverage her 94KK social following.

Which brands have tagged the Softball star as a new partner?

7-Eleven, CASETify, Mercari & Brumate are a few of the brands leveraging Burke’s social following. Across her social posts each brand has an average engagement of nearly 50K which accounts for over 5% of her total audience. Lauren has 20 branded posts overall which brings the total engagement over 750K.

Female athletes in other college sports have also been able to successfully create partnerships with brands. Hanna Cavinder a Fresno State basketball player, Jordan Chiles a UCLA Gymnast & Brooke Roberts who plays soccer for Arkansa all have 10 or more endorsements. Not a bad stat to have in under a year! Cavinder & Roberts each have over 2M social followers, though Cavinder doubles Roberts following with 4.4M. With such a large following, Cavinder’s brands see an average engagement of nearly 100K. With TikTok being her most used social platform (making up 4M of her total following), 17 of her 22 brand deals have been tagged on TikTok.

Within the women’s college sports landscape, WingStop, H&R Block, Degree, UPTIME Energy & Outback Steakhouse are the top five brands signing female college athletes to deals with each brand having over nine deals. Social Media is the top asset utilized in these deals as 85% of the time the athletes are tagging their brand partners in social media.

For the last 12 years, Turkish Airlines has been the exclusive title sponsor for the EuroLeague’s competition. While the exclusive title sponsor spot is taken, other brands like adidas, BKT, Spalding and 7days carry a large presence all over Europe during the games. For some brands, a partnership just for the Final Four is enough. Technogym and Acibadem have deals only at the season’s end and provide technical equipment and services to the teams.

The EuroLeague has been deemed the most important basketball tournament in Europe which includes the best teams throughout Europe. The league, a semi-closed league, consists of 18 teams competing to qualify to the Final Four which leads to being crowned the champions of Europe. This year the final stage is set in Belgrade, Serbia, in the Stark Arena.

The four teams competing for the title are the reigning champion, Anadolu Efes, who are looking to bring the title back to Turkey. The Spanish giants, Real Madrid and Barcelona, who bring the national rivalry to the international sphere. Finally, Olympiacos qualified second in the regular season to make the Final Four.

Off the court, Real Madrid ranks #1 in terms of social media following in the EuroLeague with 18M followers across all platforms, a sizeable lead over FC Barcelona ranked #2 with just over 3.5M. Anadolu Efes and Olympaicos rank #6 and #7 respectively within the EuroLeague.

Five different financial brands are buying uniform / jersey patches in 3+ leagues/associations: Ally Financial, Fifth Third Bank, LendingTree, PayPal and Webull Financial.

Download the SponsorUnited ’21-‘22 Marketing Partnership Finance Report now at https://hubs.la/Q018ZQ_T0 for more insights.

International superstar Shohei Ohtani has garnered an impressive 188% increase in social followers YoY. That has translated into signing more than 10 endorsements with brands globally. How does that compare to teammate Mike Trout? Trout’s social following has only grown 2% over the past year but it has not slowed down the amount of deals he has which are in the double digits.

How does this compare to other star players around the league?

Signing mega deals for a player's “performance” has not always meant endorsement deals off the field. Two examples of this are Max Scherzer & Gerrit Cole who are the two highest paid pitchers in baseball. Each player totals only two deals, both have a deal with Rawlings, while Scherzer has a deal with Indeed and Cole with Nike. Notably, both of these players are not as active on social media as some other star players having under 1 million followers each.

Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Bryce Harper comes to mind when thinking about players like Trout having more than five endorsements off the field while signing big contracts for his game play. Harper has over 2 million followers on social media that his brand partners like Dairy Queen, Gatorade & Fanatics leverage. Harper's followers average a 4% engagement rate on his social posts totalling over 380k engagements, the most of the five athletes mentioned. Ohtani leads the group with 11 total deals and highest

The NBA's Play-In Tournament is back for its 2nd year. We highlight the west coast matchup of the day as the Minnesota Timberwolves take on the Los Angeles Clippers tonight on TNT.

#sponsorships

While over 10M viewers tuned in Sunday to watch the Masters Final Round, everyone else around the world was watching the Grand National. With a view count higher than the NFL Super Bowl, over 500M people tuned in to watch the three day 2022 Grand National events. The annual horse race in Liverpool had over 60+ partnerships, including naming rights sponsors for each of the three races over the long weekend.

With a viewership number like the Grand National, it pays to be a sponsor. So who cashed in big?

The Grand National’s Race Naming Rights Sponsors for the three-day event were:

Thursday (4/7)

Randox, Betway, SSS Super Alloys, Jewson, Close Brothers, Goffs UK.

Friday (4/8)

Randox, Betway, Alder Hey, Marsh Insurance, House of Cavani, Park Palace Ponies

Saturday (4/9)

Randox, Betway, EFT Construction, Poundland, JRL Group, Weatherbys.

Randox and Betway cashed in on the high viewership count as they were the only brands with naming rights for all three days. Randox, a UK based healthcare brand, became the first non-alcoholic Title Sponsor of the Grand National in 2017 after signing a five-year deal as the Exclusive Title Sponsor (now with a new deal extension through 2026). Randox had 38+ in-person assets during this year's event, including Interior Signage, Rider Jersey Patches, Horse Saddle Signage, and Integrated Content into The Grand National’s Printed Program.

Other assets that brands activated during the race included a Sponsored Award, Press Conference Banners, and Sponsored Services Provided. The race featured over 2x more deals than the average equestrian event, and over 50% of the deals included a form of Venue Signage. In total, there are over 300 brands that partner with equestrian / thoroughbred events globally, but 27% less brands partnering with UK based events than the US.

The MLB approved jersey patch inventory for the upcoming 2022 season. Teams aim to increase revenue to keep up with the growing cost of player contracts. According to SponsorUnited, there are over 165 brands actively buying sponsorships on uniforms among US Major Pro Sports. This includes helmets in NHL and jersey sleeves in MLS.

Of these categories, Healthcare takes the top spot as the most frequent sponsorship buyer for uniform exposure deals. Healthcare has 25% of all deals by a single category, followed by Financial and Technology categories. Will this trend continue in the MLB, or will new categories and emerging brands disrupt the scene?

In 2021, the MLB saw strategic partnerships thrive within the Education sector. This category brought in more revenue to the MLB than any other Major Pro Sport in the US. One category expected to see growth this season, according to SponsorUnited’s MLB 2021 Marketing & Partnerships Annual Report, is Cryptocurrency. The top three most-searched brands in 2021 by MLB executives throughout the season were FTX, Coinbase and Crypto.com. FTX also signed a moon-sized deal with the league.

After a season of empty stadiums in 2020, more than 400 brands produced content on the big screens located in the outfield as game/entertainment content on the videoboard was the MLB’s top activation in 2021. International Car Manufacturers continue to drive towards TV deals as they were the top category in 2021, a trend that is poised to continue for a 6th straight year.

The first race of the F1 season took place this past Sunday at the Bahrain International Circuit. Scuderia Ferrari won the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix in a one-two finish with teammates Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz on Sunday. The team has over 25 sponsors currently, with over 15M social media followers ranking 3rd across all F1 teams. 50% of the auto brands the team partners with are in the Aftermarket - Parts & Equipment sub-category.

Among F1 teams, Scuderia Ferrari ranks 5th in terms of sponsorship deals. At the race there were over 10 brands having a presence during the broadcast as well as with signage at the track.

Throughout the Bahrain International Circuit, Crypto.com had over five assets between the broadcast and venue after recently signing a deal with F1 entering this season. Signage included the Archway, Barrier, a fixed and rotating billboard as well as naming rights to the podium where the top finishers are presented.

Rolex has been a sponsor of F1 since 2013 and receives tons of exposure during races. As the Official Timepiece of F1, Rolex began the season with eight assets between the broadcast and venue. Similar to Crypto.com, Rolex can be seen with the similar assets while also having a Fixed Groundscape as well as having the event clock signage.

Teams Compete on the Field in El Clásico, While Brands are Competing Off the Field

With a combined annual commercial turnover of €700m, this Sunday, two of the world’s biggest football teams Real Madrid and Barcelona, match up for the second El Clasico of the 2021/22 La Liga season.

The rivalries extend from the pitch to their partners with competitors utilizing the power of the clubs to gain market share in their categories. This can be seen with Nike (FCB) v Adidas (RM), Mahou (RM) v Estrella Damm (FCB), and Cupra (FCB) v Audi (RM). The outlier in this being Coca-Cola, who are the Soft Drink Partner of both clubs, despite Gatorade (PepsiCo) also being the Official Sports Nutrition Partner of FC Barcelona, in comparison to Powerade (Coca-Cola) for Real Madrid.

Most recently, Barcelona agreed to terms with Spotify on a mega 4-year deal worth north of $300 million. This deal marks the teams first with a digital audio company while Real Madrid currently does not have one. The deal sees Barcelona’s stadium renamed to Spotify Camp Nou while also getting exposure on the team's training kits.

Despite both teams having a social following of over 250M, Real Madrid leverages their social media more with over 1,200 sponsored posts (compared to FC Barcelona’s 450) resulting in over double the total engagement at 78.5M v FC Barcelona: 32.3M.

Both teams have global presence and awareness which can be seen through their partnership portfolio. Both teams have deals with large international brands Emirates (RM) and Rakuten (FCB) being the primary jersey patches, as well as smaller, regional deals with local and regional brands for the teams. Real Madrid has regional sponsors including KOK Sports (Asia) and RepX (LATAM), while FC Barcelona include Rakbank (UAE) and Taiping Life Insurance (China) among their partners.

Unlike what is being seen in the U.S., the betting category has shrunk dramatically across La Liga teams. This is due to new laws banning the advertisement of gambling companies across Spain, which had previously seen all La Liga sides having a betting partner in 2020/21, including seven with primary jersey patch deals.

Over 115 brands have taken advantage of signing a men’s college basketball player to a NIL deal since granted access in July 2021. Mercury NFT claims the #1 overall spot with 11 total NIL deals. The brand’s college portfolio includes Dontaie Allen, Keion Brooks Jr., Davion Mintz, Jacob Toppin, TyTy Washington, along with Coach John Calipari of the Kentucky Wildcats.

Rounding out the top four spots are Morgan & Morgan (10 deals), FTX (7 deals) and Raising Cane’s (7 deals). 48% of Morgan & Morgan’s total sponsorship deals are with collegiate basketball players while FTX continues to expand their portfolio across numerous colleges and leagues during the 2021 and 2022 seasons.

The technology category has over 30 endorsements within the NIL space with NFT’s accounting for nearly 50% of tech category deals. Ranked by sub-categories in technology, NFT is second after Non-Athletic Apparel/Footwear. Cryptocurrency is 5th as brands lean on the younger generation to promote the blockchain technology that has recently revolutionized the technology industry. Instagram is the most utilized social media platform by these athletes as it beats out Twitter in terms of the number of branded posts.

10 of the Kentucky Wildcat players have landed in the top 30 for NCAA men’s basketball players in terms of NIL endorsement deals. Here is the full list of the top athletes with 5 or more endorsement deals:

Three weeks into the 2022 MLS season, new brands have been seen entering the MLS sponsorship space for the first time, partnering with teams after the season opener on February 26th. Nashville FC named cryptocurrency brand, Valkyrie Invest, as a founding partner a week into the 2022 season. Nashville FC became the first MLS team to accept a full partnership fee in bitcoin.

Part of the partnership includes club naming rights to Nashville FC’s new 850-seat premium club, which will be renamed to the Valkyrie Premier Club. Valkyrie Invest was the #23 most searched brand this past week on the SponsorUnited platform seeing a jump from #7,492 the previous week. Many other brands have entered the MLS for the first time during the 2022 season.

Nashville SC X GEODIS

With Nashville SC set to begin play at their new stadium during the 2022 season, the team has secured a venue naming rights partner, GEODIS, which will rename the field to GEODIS Park. GEODIS is an international brand headquartered in France with their eyes set on an expansion in the United States as they have recently opened a new warehouse in New York.

Charlotte FC X Ruoff MortgageRuoff Mortgage was named the Official Mortgage Company of Charlotte FC as part of a multi-year partnership less than a week into the club’s inaugural season. This deal marks the brand's first partnership with an MLS club.

NYFC X FloFlo was named the Official Electric Vehicle Charging Partner of the 2021 MLS Champion, the New York City Football Club. The partnership marks the brand’s first Major Pro Sports partnership in the United States although they currently have a deal in the NHL with the Vancouver Canucks in Canada.

Chicago Fire X Wintrust Financial CorporationChicago based company, Wintrust, entered the MLS for the first time in a multi-year partnership with the Chicago Fire FC, becoming the Official Banking Partner of the team. The brand will leverage assets which include exclusive pitch entitlement for all home games played at Soldier Field, as well as key signage throughout the stadium including the player tunnel and in-stadium LED signage.

Throughout the 2021 NFL season, Bose Corporation ranked #1 in total posts (with players and teams) while Lexus had the highest average engagement per post.

Stay tuned tomorrow for the release of the NFL 2021 Marketing & Partnerships Annual Report.

Congratulations to the Los Angeles Rams for winning Super Bowl LVI and Cooper Kupp on receiving the MVP award.

Anheuser-Busch showcased their brands in featured segments during the broadcast on NBC, while Crypto brands, being new to the Super Bowl scene, saw advertisements from Coinbase, FTX, eToro&Crypto.com who have combined over 115 new sponsorship deals since the beginning of 2021.

Opening Ceremonies for the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games took place today. Spotlighted are endorsement deals for some of the top competitors from around the world competing in the games.

Alexis Pinturault from France competes in his 3rd Winter Olympics as an alpine skier. Pinturault has 14 partnerships across 10 categories, including deals with Red Bull, Agence, Zoom, and Bollé.

On January 8th, 2022, online sports betting was legalized in New York. Big companies like DraftKings and FanDuel quickly launched earning an estimated $91.4 million in revenue through the first 16 days according to legalsportsreport.com. DraftKings has the most partnership deals in the betting services / DFS space. FanDuel ranks #4 according to the SponsorUnited platform.

DraftKings leads the way in the category having the most active deals in the New York market. This includes deals with the New York Giants and New York Mets. In 2021, DraftKings had a 56% increase YOY sponsorship increase while having 85+ deals within 30+ leagues. The most common assets bought besides use of marks, is social media posts 57% of the time, and event content/activation 41%.

Betway ranks #2 in this category having more deals internationally than in the United States. Betway has 19 deals in the UK, 10 deals in Germany and 18 deals in the United States. 13 of the deals in the United Kingdom are with the Premier League. Their largest deal is with West Ham United which includes 12 unique sponsorship assets, this is 10 more than the Totthenham Hotspurs.

After having a deal with the Pat McAfee Show since 2019, FanDuel signed the podcast to a mega deal at roughly $30 million/year according to multiple reports. With online betting now legal in New York state, the New York market is tied with Pittsburgh as FanDuel's top market. 57% of the brands sponsorship deals are with the 5 Major Pro Sports in the United States.

In total, there is currently over 320 active brands buying sponsorship or media within the betting services & DFS categories while each brand averages 7 deals.

Congratulations to Tom Brady on a Hall of Fame career ending with 7 Super Bowl rings and being one of the greatest QB’s to ever play the game.

Brady finished his career having 14 endorsement deals while aggressive pursuing the Cryptocurrency and NFT space signing a deal with FTX and creating NFT platform Autograph.

NFL Conference Playoffs are taking place this weekend. The remaining NFL teams are only 1 win away from making it to the Super Bowl as the Chiefs host the Bengals, and the Rams host the 49ers in the NFL Conference Championship games this weekend.

Today's Lineup highlights 1 player from each of the teams with the most endorsement deals. Travis Kelce leads all athletes playing on Sunday with over 26 partnerships, edging out his super-star QB teammate, Patrick Mahomes, who has 22 deals. Kelce has deals with HyVee, Bud Light, Aaron, Sachs & Associates & Club Carwash.

SAAS / Software company, EVERFI emphasize youth and community initiatives through their partnerships in Major Pro Sports.

93% of EverFi's total deals include a community / cause related asset. Interested in learning more about SAAS / Software brands? Stay tuned for the SponsorUnited Technology Sponsorships Annual Report coming next week!

The NFL playoffs are here after the first 17-game regular season. Josh Allen’s Buffalo Bills will host rookie Mac Jones and the New England Patriots on the CBS Saturday Primetime spot for NFL’s Super Wild Card Weekend.

Josh Allen leads the QB matchup on the field as his team won the AFC East and also off the field in total social followers and total partnerships. Working with 14 brands across 12 categories during the 2021-22 season, Allen has notable deals with West Herr, Buffalo Wild Wings and Labatt Blue.

Mac Jones comes in slightly behind Allen with 11 total deals and 70k less social followers. Jones was part of the Bose NFL Draft 2021 campaign which featured the five rookie QB’s selected in the first round including Zach Wilson and #1 Draft pick Trevor Lawrence. Following in former Patriot QB Tom Brady’s footsteps will be no easy feat, but Mac Jones is on his way after a stellar start on and off the field his rookie year.

The players with the most deals in the NFL are Rob Gronkowski and JuJu Smith-Schuster, both have 29 total deals. Gronkowsi has nearly 10 million followers on social media giving his brand partners like Bud Light, Hims & Hers and Hisense tons of visibility. Juju Smith-Schuster, who is known to be a gamer, has over 257,000 followers on Twitch and has deals with tech brands like HyperX, HP, & Microsoft Surface.

Over 890 brands have signed an endorsement deals with a NFL player this season. Adidas leads the way in terms of total deals while Verizon is a close second followed by Nike. On average, each player in the league signed a total of four deals while each brand has an average of three. 77% of all deals include a social media post as brands look to leverage the athletes platforms to attract fans towards their campaigns.

Inter Milan beat Juventus Football Club with a last minute winner in the Supercoppa Italiana, an annual competition played by the winners of Serie A and the Coppa Italiana.

The two teams showcase partnerships with brands including Jeep, adidas, Socios.com, and Nike. Both teams are also in the top five for most exclusive properties within Serie A, just behind A.S Roma and Genoa.

The 2022 College Football Playoff National Championship in Indianapolis aired on ESPN last night. More than 80 brands were visible during the broadcast where the The University of Georgia beat The University of Alabama 33 - 18.

Many familiar brands within the college space leveraged the airtime. AT&T who was seen throughout the game has over 60 deals across the NCAA. Other brands with a significant presence in the NCAA and also during the championship game broadcast were Taco Bell, Capital One, and Goodyear. These brands have 50, 30 and 10 deals across the NCAA respectively.

As the NCAA Football season comes to an end, more than 9,000 brands in over 30 categories were actively buying sponsorship or media within the NCAA since the start of the football season. TicketSmarter, Coca-Cola & Pepsi are the top three brands in terms of sponsorship deals with Allstate and Nike rounding out the top five.

July 2021 was a big month for college athletes. They were granted the ability to sign endorsement deals as part of the new NIL (Name, Image, Likeness) Law that was passed. NIL Endorsement deals gives student athletes the opportunity to begin making money while playing sports in college.

Apparel & Accessory brands took immediate advantage of this opportunity leading the way in total deals with college athletes. Many would assume this means Nike, Adidas, and Under Armour were signing many of these deals. Instead it was emerging brands like Rhoback, PSD Underwear, and Fanjoy which lead the way with the most endorsement deals in the Apparel & Accessory category.

More than 350 brands have signed NIL deals with college athletes. Raising Cane’s is at the top of the list. FTX follows right behind with over 10 deals in the NIL space.

Heading into tonight’s College Football Championship, here are the top four players who have signed the most deals between the two teams this season. Heisman Trophy winner and Alabama star QB, Bryce Young, has the highest social following of the four athletes. It was reported by Alabama head coach, Nick Saban, that Young was making near 7-figures in NIL deals before throwing his first pass this season. Will more brands moving forward take a shot on athletes prior to the season after seeing the success of Bryce Young?