Fan First

Recently NFL Shop, the National Football League’s marketing arm, rolled out a fresh new campaign, called “Fan Like a Pro.” After years of unchanged messaging, the goal is to put fans front and center and celebrate the ways they engage with their teams. 

“Fan Like a Pro” brings fans and athletes together in a series of seven ad spots. In each video, fans model their teams’ merchandise as players talk about the relationship they have with fans. 

In addition, NFL Shop is focusing on bringing a sense of “fashion” to their merchandise. They’ve announced Abercrombie & Fitch as their official fashion partner, collaborating with them to produce new lines of gear designed with style in mind. 

The goal of the campaign and strategic partnership is to engage new fans and excite existing ones in addition to giving them new ways to express their fandom. These moves bring fans closer into their franchises by treating them as genuine parts of the team. 

Centering messaging around consumers – the fans – and giving them more ways to engage in the relationship with the brand could prove to be an impactful pivot for the NFL’s marketing division. It will be interesting to see how NFL Shop builds on this campaign in future seasons.