NBA growth in Australia, Darcy Moore's "Clanger" PR stunt, Melbourne Victory's viral violinist
NBA growth in Australia, Darcy Moore's "Clanger" PR stunt, Melbourne Victory's viral violinist
Today’s lineup:
NBA growth in Australia
Darcy Moore's "Clanger" PR stunt
Melbourne Victory's viral violinist
Not yet a subscriber? Discover specialised sports marketing insights, tailored for sports industry professionals within Australia and across the globe. If you work in sports for an agency, brand or rights-holder then this is for you.
Forcast became the formalwear partner of the Australia Sevens Women’s and the Wallaroos, as part of Rugby Australia’s first ever deal with a dedicated female retailer
Hyundai extended their sponsorship of RAC Arena until 2027
Remitly became the official money transfer partner of the Parramatta Eels
Morris and the Geelong Cats announced a new sponsorship extension
Sports nutrition company BSc announced a new sponsorship of the Westpac NSW Blues and Westpac NSW Sky Blues ahead of 2024 Ampol State of Origin series
This weekend’s NRL Magic Round is officially a sellout with Suncorp Stadium attendance set to reach 140,000 over the weekend
Football Australia announced it has won the hosting rights for the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026
Usman Khawaja became an ambassador of Prime Video’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup broadcast
Nedd Brockmann announced that he’ll be attempting to break the world record for the fastest time to cover 1000 miles (1610km) on foot, while aiming to raise $10m to help Aussie’s experiencing homelessness
Moonee Valley Racing Club is considering building 2 x new football ovals in the centre of their racecourse as part of an AFL proposal (several other sporting organisations have also considered lodging submissions for a long-term infield lease)
Basketball Australia is planning to sell a majority stake (up to 70%) in the WNBL, reportedly worth as much as $20m
The Federal Government announced it will spend $249.7m to upgrade the Australian Institute of Sport campus ahead of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games
The Australian Sports Commission will receive $97m+ over 2 years to extend Sporting Schools, the Local Sporting Champions, and Local Para Champions programs
The 2027 Rugby World Cup (men’s) and 2029 Rugby World Cup (women’s) will receive income tax exemptions
The Tasmania Football Club announced that Brendon Gale will be the club’s first CEO, starting in early 2025
Cricket Australia appointed creative agency Special to assist with their upcoming international summer or cricket campaigns following a competitive pitch
Snoop Dogg & Dr Dre’s new “Gin & Juice” alcoholic beverage brand (named after their 1994 hit song) is sponsoring college football’s “Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl”
Cristiano Ronaldo became an official global ambassador, and investor of Whoop
Netflix secured broadcast rights of 2 x NFL games on Christmas Day
Recently, it was reported that Australia has delivered record-breaking viewership for the 2023-24 NBA season – ranking 1st globally for NBA League Pass average viewership, watch hours and subscriptions.
This is a reflection of the growing popularity of the NBA in Australia, which has been helped along by:
The changing way fans consume sports – increasingly via streaming services such as Kayo Sports
Expanded choice & access, making it easier for fans to discover new sports
Given the NBA's popularity, ESPN continues to increase the number of NBA games broadcast in Australia every year (via Kayo).
What else is fueling the NBA’s growth?
Having stars such as Josh Giddey, Patty Mills and Ben Simmons among the 11 x Aussie's competing plays a major role in the growth of the league and the associated teams.
In addition, the NBA has been increasing its exposure in Australia via a variety of touchpoints:
Digital: 2m+ social media community in Australia
Retail: Opened 2 x flagship NBA Stores in Melbourne & Sydney in 2022
On-ground activations: Launched its official NBA Exhibition
Player visits: Several current & past players have conducted "official" visits to Australia including Josh Green, Jamal Murray, and Dirk Nowitzki, and many others have “unofficially” visited
Sponsorship activations
TAB recently hosted “Gary Payton’s Block Party” in Sydney
Hennessy turned Bondi Icebergs pool into a basketball court and built a floating basketball court on Sydney Harbour:
Some less-obvious theories...
The players are the NBA’s “secret sauce”, according to Dan Easton, Insights Manager at Gemba. The NBA provides players with a rare level of freedom, enabling them to openly engage and express themselves in front of the media as much or as little as they like. The end result is the production of relatable, controversial and appealing content that helps them to connect with the everyday fan… Read more here
NBA apparel doubles as advertising in Australia, and Australians are heavy buyers of NBA apparel. When people wear NBA apparel around town, they act like mobile billboards… Read more here
The growth of the NBA appears to be supporting the growth of basketball in Australia
Participation is rising (1.3m participants in Aus) and the NBL has become one of the fastest growing sports leagues in Australia with an estimated annual revenue of $40m.
The growth of the NBA isn't good news for all sports though. The increased competition adds to an already saturated Australian sports landscape, and the NBA isn't the only US sport targeting Australia.
The NFL is in international expansion mode, and Australia is part of the plan
The league has made their plan public to grow its international business over a 10-year period and are aiming to:
Generate $1b new annual revenue
Attract 50m new fans
Read more here.
This PR stunt featuring Darcy Moore was far from a "Clanger" and it's had 1m+ views across social media so far
Although the acting was questionable, this clip of the Collingwood Captain being swooped by a magpie and smashing his car windscreen was good enough that it left many AFL fans confused over whether it was “real” or not on social media.
The confusion generated mass-engagement which sent Instagram’s algorithm into a spin.
So far, this reel has received 857k+ views on Darcy Moore's Instagram which is his highest performing reel by far. In some cases, it's outperformed others in his feed by 15x.
In addition, it’s received:
270k+ views on Seven Network’s TikTok
Many more views across fan pages and other AFL accounts
Earned media cover across radio, podcasts and online media
Following the release of this clip, Darcy Moore posted another reel cheekily revealing that "it's lucky I'm with AAMI" and that "it's almost as if it never happened in the first place."
This surprise-campaign has proven to be a highly-effective way for AAMI to introduce Darcy Moore as their new AFL ambassador, and a great example demonstrating how a creative idea can deliver exponential results.
Sure, AAMI could've gone with a safer option (e.g. a static post & simple announcement message) but it would've been less interesting and would've only reached a fraction of the audience.
Working with OMD Australia, AAMI has now created multiple noteworthy content pieces to leverage their partnership of the AFL.
In the lead up to previous AFL Grand Finals, they've successfully mixed advertising with the TV broadcast to create an "ownable moment" on Australia's biggest sporting stage:
Has Melbourne Victory found a new permanent pre-game ritual?
Evangeline Victoria aka the “Viral Violinist” has been lighting up Melbourne Victory games recently with her “Freed From Desire” and “Seven Nation Army” violin covers.
Not only have her performances added to the matchday experience, they’ve sent Melbourne Victory’s social media channels into overdrive.
Her video’s have received an unprecedented number of views (outperforming other posts by up to 300x) and some clips have been viewed millions of times.
Highest viewed videos across Melbourne Victory social media platforms:
TikTok – 6.9m views
Facebook – 4.4m+ views
Instagram – 600k+ views
Not only are the view counts high, the sentiment is overwhelmingly positive and many fans are calling for her to become a permanent fixture in the matchday experience.
Will Melbourne Victory give the fans what they want?
If they don't, maybe Carlton Football Club will make an approach after Daniel Gorringe put out a public plea on his highly popular "Dan Does Footy" podcast for the club to lure her performance to the MCG.
AusCycling - Event and State Operations Lead
Australian Football League - National Disability Inclusion Participation Lead
Australian Sports Commission - Program Manager
Aware Super - Sponsorship Lead
Bastion - Senior Broadcast Producer
Bastion - Senior Client Director PR
Bastion - Experiential Producer
Bastion - Social Media Manager
Bicycle SA - Program Coordinator
Brisbane Broncos - Head of Commercial Sales
Bursty - Account Director
Callaway Golf - Email Marketing Specialist
ClassPass - Partner Development Spec
Cricket NSW - Fan & Community Engagement Specialist - Sydney Sixers
Cricket Victoria - Marketing & Communications Specialist
Cricket Victoria - Head of Marketing & Fan Engagement (Melbourne Renegades)
Croquet Australia - Chief Executive Officer
ESPN - Sales Executive
Foxtel Group - Producer Fox Sports
Gemba - Event Manager
Gemba - Creative Producer
Kardinia Park Stadium Trust - General Manager - Venue and Commercial Operations
KIC - Content Coordinator
Little Athletics NSW - Event Coordinator
LSKD - Community Marketing Manager
Mazda - Brand Marketing & Partnerships Specialist (10 Month Contract)
Melbourne Storm - Marketing Coordinator
MKTG Sports + Entertainment - Senior Event Manager
Mooney Valley Racing Club - Customer & Partnership Coordinator
Moonee Valley Racing Club - Strategic Project Manager
Motorsport Australia - Communications Manager
National Basketball League - User Experience Designer
National Rugby League - Grant & Policy Manager
Netball Australia - Events Manager
Nielsen - Product Specialist, Sports
Perth Glory - Events Manager
Queensland University of Technology - Marketing and Promotions Officer, Sport
Racing Queensland - Chief Operating Officer
Red Bull - Sports Event Manager
Rugby League Players Association - Digital Content Producer
Seven - Sport Sales Executive
South Australian Rugby Union - Marketing & Communications Coordinator
Sportsbet - Digital Product Manager
Sportsbet - Social Media Performance and Technology Manager
Sportsbet - SEM Specialist (Paid Search)
Sports Entertainment Network - Merchandise Manager
Stan - Sports Programmer - Olympics
Swimming Australia - Marketing Manager
Tabcorp - Producer/Editor Sport
Tabcorp - Sponsorship & Events Executive
Tennis Australia - Communications and Campaign Lead
Tennis Australia - Digital Product Owner
Tennis Australia - Manager- Tournament Spaces Delivery
Trek Bicycle - Australia & NZ Brand Specialist
Venues NSW - Commercial Partnerships Manager
Western Bulldogs - General Manager Community Foundation
Not yet a subscriber? Discover specialised sports marketing insights, tailored for sports industry professionals within Australia and across the globe. If you work in sports for an agency, brand or rights-holder then this is for you.