Starting in the fall, YouTube will become the official home of the NFL Sunday Ticket. In order to build hype for a package that will cost it a reported $2 billion per year, the leading video platform is sending a whole convoy of creators to the NFL Draft. Beginning on April 27, personalities like Jesser, Ryan Trahan, and Lisa Nguyen will be on the ground in Kansas City, where they’ll report live as the top football amateurs join professional teams.
The NFL previously announced a partnership with creator groups AMP and RDCWorld, who will contest a flag football game during the third day of the draft. But that won’t be the only influencer-led spectacle that will take place in K.C. during the biggest weekend of the NFL offseason. In fact, the collabs between creators and football stars began before the first pick was announced and will continue throughout all seven rounds.
As NFL hopefuls head to the draft venue, YouTube will offer a “Draft Day Valet” hosted by Jesser and short-form comedian Adam W (who will also be the sideline reporter for AMP vs. RDCWorld). On-site, an “NFL Draft Experience” will give Ashley Yi
, Topper Guild, Pierson, and NichLmao a chance to see how their skills stack up against football’s top athletes.At the venue, Haley Kalil and YouTube’s favorite sports reporter Katie Feeney will host interviews. Meanwhile, at a nearby field, Ryan Trahan and one-time college football player Deestroying will lead a “Football Clinic.” And since a gridiron celebration is nothing without a good tailgate, Kansas City native Lisa Nguyen will share a mean with an NFL athlete.
Creator collabs at major sporting events are nothing new, but YouTube’s latest blitz is one of the biggest marketing pushes the Google-owned platform has made in the athletic world. By taking over the NFL Draft — and even giving creators like Dude Perfect the opportunity to announce picks on-air — YouTube is out to prove it’s the place to go for NFL action. There’s a lot riding on the platform’s incoming Sunday Ticket deal, so the timing of this particular activation comes as no surprise.
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