It is now in its fourth season with little push back, the patch program the NFL has implemented on regular season and training camp jerseys. Like the NBA, and the NHL, the patch program, with its limited size and scope, is designed to give added value and continue to serve as a litmus test for what will be accepted and what can be expanded for key added value for brands as the noise for more ROI and more access increases un the coming years. Full blown jersey advertising it is not yet, but it still provides an interesting look at who will buy, what will be sold and how can the real estate on players uniforms be used to best serve partners without impeding on the over commercialization of the sport.
In 2013, according to the NFL, all but six teams have some form of patch program for affiliated brands. One, the Atlanta Falcons, has split the program between preseason (Kimberly Clark-Professionals) and regular season (McDonalds), while nine teams have the patch program tied to a medical or health care provider (The New York Jets prominent Atlantic Healthcare is one of the most visible on their white or red practice uniforms). The majority of the others are tied to larger deals that clubs have…Visa for the 49ers, Verizon for the Vikings, Gillette for the Patriots…with some unusual ones mixed in (Thomas Tull, part owner of the Steelers, had a deal cut for his Legendary Pictures brand…which explains why Heinz Field was Bain’s choice of destruction in “Dark Knight Rises” for Batman fans).
There is no ambush, no one-off’s for particular weeks yet (a practice for patches which can be done very effectively in sponsoring a tennis or golf athlete for a particular event) and nothing that is out of the ordinary in terms of activation. Most are clean and simple with a few…the Bengals, the feature team for HBO’s “Hard Knocks” this year, have a really crowded patch with logo and writing for sponsor Fifth Third bank that gets lost in the visibility game…needing a little more scrutiny for visibility. Another interesting and very visible patch is worn this year by the Denver Broncos who sport a Buick patch on the practice uni’s. Do many Broncos drive Buicks? Well not a great deal probably, but their most visible player…Peyton Manning…does and grabbing the team patch as part of a deal prevents any kind of ambush in the category for the company. Porsche can’t walk in the door and suddenly have Peyton sporting a patch away from game days.
Obviously the program is heavily regulated by the league and the teams against ambush and issues. The cost is probably too prohibitive at this point for smaller local brands to grab, and there is little room for direct call to action featuring a website or hashtag, but maybe down the line those tests can be performed to see the increased viability of patches as marketing tools. One area that screams for patch development is not with the players, but with coaches and medical staff, especially in the preseason. Many times the coaches, and the staff when they go on field to treat injury, get more photo and air time than the individual players, so expanding the patch to include those key personnel could be a big win if a deal can be cut, especially with so many healthcare providers tied into patch deals.
The six teams not yet patch involved for 2013…the Lions, Saints, Raiders, Rams, Bucs and Redskins…probably haven’t found the right brand married to price point to make a program work yet, but it is an area of strong exposure and great added value…if not one off value…for companies looking to make the non-traditional splash. It is not an easy decision…the name has to be something that the local consumer or the national market “gets” in a second, because the space is so limited, but for the right brands, patches have scored thus far and will continue to provide valuable intel going forward as leagues in the States look for more real estate to sell without further compromising the merchandise business for the long run.
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