Not everything is decided and created in the field of marketing and its relationship with sports that operate in the mainstream. If we take a look at the trends that occur in other markets, we will realize that the usual formulas of advertising in the same places and with the same events will not always give good results. Above all because of the advertising saturation that we experience practically every day and that is causing our consumers and users not to give us their attention. The key may be in reaching the right niche at the right time with new options.
We are surrounded (and bombarded) by many different sporting events that are being shown on a massive and international level in all media.
Some examples: there are only a few days left before the start of the World Cup and almost everything we see in the advertising field, regardless of its category, is related to Qatar 2022; we are in the middle of the NFL and NBA season; the baseball world series just happened a few days ago; Formula 1 is already closing its season (with its respective Czech-mania) and they are already announcing the sale of tickets for 2023; the final of the Liga MX Femenil begins next weekend and most of the most important soccer leagues such as the Santander League in Spain, the English Premier League, the German Bundesliga and the Italian Serie A continue before the suspension due to the World Cup from Qatar. All these sports, which we are consuming in the media and beyond the emotion that they offer us to the fans, are being important windows to show all the marketing communication messages of countless brands and services.
But, does anyone around here know and practice Pickleball?
For those who answered affirmatively, congratulations, sport is health (Uncle Arturo’s advice); but those who answered no, what happens? Aren’t they trendy?
That’s right, if we don’t have enough with all the aforementioned sports to give our brands a marketing boost, there is already another one that is becoming more and more popular and that they are turning to see it as an advertising and promotional resource.
Pickleball, a racket sport that is a mixture of tennis, ping pong and badminton, which is played on a court very similar in size to that of a badminton court, in which a special perforated, hollow ball is used, very easy to learn, fun, in which any user can participate and start in this sport, since the rules are simple and do not require as much physical effort as others in its category.
Although it is a relatively new sport, its creation dates back to the mid-1960s and it has grown so much since then that, in the US alone, by 2021 there were already 5 million pickleball players.
Hence, at present, the interest of brands has increased in this sport, especially because popular interest is also growing internationally (in more than 70 countries it is already practiced). They even say that it has come to replace the “boom” of paddle tennis and is the fastest growing sport in the US according to the Sports & Fitness Industry Association. In this country, for example, there is already the Major League Pickleball, among other associations and groups, founded last year and which will have 16 teams in 2023 (they currently have 12) hoping that year to reach 40 million fans.
In this mentioned league, players will participate in 6 tournaments in 6 different cities to fight for more than 2 million cash prizes next 2023.
Great personalities are joining the business that this sport represents. There are the cases of basketball players LeBron James along with Draymond Green, who just invested in one of the teams last September; Tom Brady in October; Kevin Durant, the star of the Brooklyn Nets in the NBA, has also already invested in a team and in the same way the former New Orleans Saints quarterback, Drew Brees, former tennis players Kim Clijsters and James Blake and billionaire Marc Lasry.
And the brands and products related to this “new” sport cannot be left behind to participate in the business:
The US National Pickleball Championship, held at the Indian Wells Tennis Garden in California, aired nationally on CBS Sports and ESPN in 2018. This year’s sponsors are Hyundai, Chase Bank, the home bookmaker DraftKings and the used car buying and selling company Carvana.
The Anheuser-Busch brewery, which makes Budweiser, among other big-name beers, will buy equipment.
Molson Coors’ Vizzy brand of hard seltzer will be the first brand in that category to sponsor the PAA tour.
The pickleball apparel market has grown 9.4% in 2022 and is expected to be worth $680.3 million by 2026. Brands include Adidas, Fila, Marks & Graham, Lululemon and Athleta.
Other brands that participate in the pickleball market are: Head, Gamma Sports, New balance, K-Swiss, Wilson, Lacoste, Under Armour, Lotto and Nike.
The popularity of the pickle is already being used in favor of social causes. Celebrities such as Will Ferrel, Luis Guzmán, Aisha Tyler, Emma Watson, Jaime Camil, Sugar Ray Leonard and with Stephen Colbert as host, will be some of those who will participate in a CBS special (Pickled) in which they will be present playing this sport. to raise funds to support families in poverty through the Comic Relief US project.
An important marketing lesson when you know how to properly land an activity that was originally aimed at the Boomer generation and that is now being accepted by all the other generations until reaching the new Alpha generation.
Pickleball is gaining more and more space among consumers and we already realize that there are many brands that are not missing out on the opportunity. There are brand ambassadors, there are media that cover the events, there are sponsoring brands, new companies are opening that produce all the articles to practice sports, there are influencers from different categories and segments that are beginning to talk about this phenomenon and is professionalizing the activity.
Brands, companies, media in Mexico, what else do they want to enter a new space, practically virgin in our country, to take advantage of and show themselves and even develop products and services that others are not offering?
If in an environment oversaturated with massive sporting events we do not take advantage of the new business opportunities that arise with something new and different, it is up to us not to find the gap.