MILFORD Conn. Subway will team up with NBC Sports this season for a multiplatform marketing blitz centered around the network’s broadcasts of the National Football League and the National Hockey League.
As part of the deal, Subway will be the main sponsor of intermission highlights for every NHL “Game of the Week” broadcast on NBC. The Milford-based sandwich chain with nearly 32,000 locations worldwide also will present the “Subway Fresh Take,” a highlight reel and profile of an emerging football star, during every Sunday night NFL broadcast on NBC.
“We are very pleased to partner with NBC Sports on this groundbreaking, multiplatform sports relationship,” said Tony Pace, chief marketing officer of the Subway Franchisee Advertising Fund Trust. “High-profile sports work for the Subway brand in a couple of ways. First, it reaches a wide swath of the population, which is very important for a brand of our size. Second, it helps reinforce the health and active dimensions of Subway, which set us apart from our restaurant competitors.”
Subway also will be the presenting sponsor of a special episode of “Football Night in America” during Wildcard Weekend of the NFL playoffs, airing on Jan. 10, 2010. The brand also will feature “Fresh Take” profiles during the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in January on NBC.
Co-branded commercials with Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps will begin airing in the fourth quarter of 2009 and the first quarter of 2009. The spots will air during prime time, late night and during sports programs like “Football Night in America.”
For several years now, Subway has partnered with professional athletes in its commercials to tout its healthful menu options, including its eight subs with less than 6 grams of fat. Recent TV spots have featured Phelps, baseball player Ryan Howard, professional wrestler John Cena, and football players Michael Strahan and Justin Tuck singing the “$5 Footlong” jingle with brand spokesman Jared Fogle.
The chain also sponsors Carl Edwards’ No. 99 car on the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.
But the sponsorship of NBC programming will allow Subway to highlight different brand messages, such as its catering options suitable to large gatherings for football watching. A recent poll conducted by NBC Universal found that 86 percent of football fans surveyed recognize NBC’s “Sunday night is football night” tagline, and 73 percent eat a meal during football broadcasts on Sunday nights.
“Our unique partnership with Subway is a natural extension of NBC Sports’ big-event strategy,” said Mike McCarley, senior vice president for NBC Sports. “Nothing brings friends and family together better than great food and big events on TV.”
According to Nielsen, NBC’s Sunday night football broadcast was the fifth-highest rated weekly program during the week of Sept. 21. Its 10.7 rating was the highest for Sunday programming and trailed only “NCIS,” “Dancing with the Stars,” “NCIS: Los Angeles” and “Grey’s Anatomy” for the week.
Contact Mark Brandau at [email protected].
