SPONSORSHIP & PROMOTION
Sportswear brand PUMA struck a multi-year deal with LaLiga to become the Spanish league’s newest partner. Starting with the 2019/20 season, PUMA will produce the official match ball and other products for all games in Spain’s top-flight leagues: LaLiga Santander and LaLiga 1|2|3.
Calumet, Michigan, which was declared the winner of KraftHockeyvilleUSA 2019, will host the Red Wingsand Bluesfor an NHL preseason game on Sept. 26. NBC Sports will provide live coverage of KraftHockeyvilleUSA 2019 at 7p on NBCSN.
The Jordan Brand Classic announced that its first-ever Twitter livestream will hit screens on Saturday at 6p. The event hosts topmale and female high school basketball players. For the first time the brand’s marquee event will be held at Las Vegas’ T-Mobile Arena.
Triple-A Baseball announced that Ephesus Sports Lighting, the leader in solid-state sports lighting, has been named an official partner of Triple-A Baseball for the 2019 season. In addition, the league’s staple event will now be known as the Triple-A National Championship Game Presented by Ephesus Sports Lighting,pitting the champions of the International League and Pacific Coast League takes place on Sept. 17. The partnership platform will include the “Ephesus Sports Lighting Championship Spotlight” – periodic features published on the International League and Pacific Coast League websites highlighting the leading contenders for a berth in the 2019 Triple-A National Championship Game Presented by Ephesus Sports Lighting.
Warfare Sports announced its entry into the marketplace, looking to deliver boxing action as a direct to consumer application. The company offered plans to carry 24 live events over the next year in addition to shoulder programming. Already signed on to handle on-air commentary is Al Bernstein, Megan Anderson and Marc Abrams, according to reports.
NBC Sports Gold’s “Pro Motocross Pass” is open for business now, being offered $54.99, providing U.S. and international moto fans with streaming coverage of the 2019 Lucas Oil Motocross Championship season, including all 250 and 450 class races this season.
ELEAGUE and Xbox teamed up for a new partnership designed to celebrate the Gears of War amid the release of Gears 5 later this year. ELEAGUE signed on to produce six, hour-long feature episodes spotlighting pro Gears of War competitions, including deeper looks into the lives of star players as they train and perform around the world. ELEAGUE Gears Summer Series: The Bonds and Betrayals of Brotherhood will debut June 14 at 11p on TBS. In addition to the TBS episodes, ELEAGUE will officially reveal new Gears 5 multiplayer gameplay when it hosts the latest title’s first-ever esports tournament, from July 13-14, with live coverage available on Twitch and B/R Live. The ELEAGUE Gears Summer Series tournament will feature eight of the world’s top teams
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, NetherRealm Studios and Intersport announced the debut of Mortal Kombat 11 Pro Kompetition 2019/2020, with the inaugural season of the series showcasing the upcoming installment of the Mortal Kombatfranchise. This year, the Mortal Kombat 11 Pro Kompetitionwill offer players a shot to compete in nine different live tournaments across North America, Latin America and Europe, as well as multiple online events, with a $155,000 prize pool up for grabs and the opportunity to qualify for one of 12 spots in Final Kombat. The first stop on North America’s Pro Kompetition will run May 24-26 at Combo Breaker 2019 in Chicago. The top 16 players from the various events will qualify for Final Kombat, the championship finale, and have the chance to take home an additional cut of a $100,000 USD prize pool. Final Kombat is scheduled for Q1 of 2020, again in Chicago.
Caffeine continues to reel in content deals, this time announcing a media partnership with DreamHack that will see all DreamHack CS:GO and Dota 2 events streamed live in addition to the launch of a new DreamHack-dedicated show Overtime that will run on Caffeine throughout the year. The new series debuts live from the DreamHack Open Rio 2019 from April 19-21, and include coverage of CORSAIR DreamHack Masters in Dallas, Texas (June 2019) and Malmö, Sweden (October 2019); as well as and DreamHack Open events in Atlanta, Georgia (November 2019), Tours, France (May 2019), Summer and Winter (Jönköping, Sweden), Rotterdam, Netherlands (October 2019) and Sevilla, Spain (December 2019).
Trail Blazers star Meyers Leonard announced his investment into FaZe Clan, posting that “FaZe has taken the gaming world by storm, helping grow some of the largest gamers and content creators of our time. I make it a point not to invest in something unless I am incredibly passionate about it and I believe I can authentically impact the business. This investment into FaZe Clan not only represents a belief in the organization, but a belief in the long-term potential of #gamingand #esports. What better way to announce this investment than through the highest visibility platform that I have? My sneakers during a televised NBA game. I’m always looking for innovating ways to cut through the noise.”
Missed the 2019 Esports Upfront? Well… you missed a slew of new opportunities opening up throughout the industry, news on new content, big personalities heading to new homes, venue announcements, upcoming tournaments and more (which I can’t share yet)! Thanks to all of our partners and participants who came and we look forward to next year’s event.
UFC announced that Peter Dropick has been promoted to Executive Vice President, Event Development and Operations. Dropick oversees key components of UFC’s global live events, including scheduling, venue management, event operations, and ticket sales. In recent years, the scope of his responsibilities has also evolved to include event marketing and P&L management. Dropick now oversees UFC‘s live event operations across North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and Australia, with 42 live events planned in 2019.
In other MMA news, ONE Championship announced a multi-year seven-figure partnership with Global Association of Mixed Martial Arts, the independent governing body for the sport of mixed martial arts worldwide. As part of this partnership, ONE Championship will support GAMMA’s efforts to obtain Olympic recognition for mixed martial arts. In addition, ONE will also work with GAMMA to develop and promote best practices in health and safety standards, anti-doping regulations, and competition rules for the daily safe practice of competitive mixed martial arts at the amateur level.
THE NORTHERN TRUST, the first event of the PGA TOUR’s FedExCup Playoffs set for August 6-11, 2019 at Liberty National Golf Club in Jersey City, has hired Steve Kalmanas the tournament’s Head of Sales. Kalman was previously Sales Manager for 98.7 ESPN New York and prior to that worked for WFAN- CBS NY, where he oversaw sales for the Mets, Giants, and Yankees. Steve has more than 25 years of experience in the tri-state market. As Head of Sales, Steve will lead all Northeast sales efforts for the first event in the FedExCup Playoffs.
Pac-12 Networks announced today that Steve Tsengwill join the Pac-12 as Executive Vice President, Sales, effective May 13. In his new role, Tseng will be responsible for revenue growth across sponsorship, advertising, branded content and related Pac-12 assets, based out of Pac-12 headquarters in San Francisco and reporting into Pac-12 Networks President Mark Shuken.
The XFL named Janet Duch, most recently Senior Vice President of On Location Experiences and a long-time executive at Madison Square Garden, as President of the XFL football team in New York. Duch will be responsible for the team’s fan engagement and business operations, including ticket sales, corporate partnerships, marketing, content, communications, community relations, and the game day experience.
Pacers/Celtics on TNT at 7p.
