Through its Esports Sponsorship Agreements, AT&T Communications is Positioning the Brand for Growth with Young, Digitally Minded Customers
Trio of Recently Announced Opportunities Enable AT&T to Better Connect With Consumers and Emerging Leaders in Business
AT&T will be able to reach more than 22 million people each month across social media and digital platforms used by esports organizations it sponsors. A trio of recently announced esports sponsorship investments makes this reach possible, and provides new ways to help the company grow its relationships with current and new customers across the esports community.
From professional esports teams like Cloud9’s highly competitive players, to marquee tournaments, and to leagues including the NBA 2K League and ESL Mobile Open, AT&T’s sponsorships and experiential marketing investments position the brand to better connect with consumers and emerging leaders in business who are players and fans in a gaming world fueled, in part, by AT&T’s technologies.
“You could say that AT&T has been part of esports for decades. Many gaming consoles, mobile gaming titles and players using them rely on AT&T wireline internet service and our nationwide wireless mobile service,” said Shiz Suzuki, assistant vice president for Sponsorships & Experiential Marketing, AT&T Communications.
“While those technologies can connect our customers to the esports they love, we’re looking to deepen our connections with current and new customers across digital and social channels, in-person and live-streamed events, made-for-digital content and other experiences. Our new agreements in 2019 are a series of investments in the esports community that will create more ways for us to reach fans and help AT&T Communications’ growth.”
Since the start of 2019, AT&T has reached sponsorship agreements with the NBA 2K League and with Cloud9, and has a prior agreement with ESL that includes support for the new ESL Mobile Open league launching this month. Together, this series of investments enables AT&T Communications to connect – in new ways – with millions of social media followers each month, and hundreds of thousands of mobile game enthusiasts and esports event attendees throughout the year.
Whether at an event, at home or on the go, here are some of the ways AT&T will work with its sponsored esports organizations to reach fans, including the 30.3 million people in the United States who will watch an esports event at least once a month in 2019 – a more than 18 percent increase over last year, according to eMarketer.
On and off the court, with the NBA 2K League
For its second season starting April 2, AT&T is presenting sponsor of the NBA 2K League’s THE BANNER CHAIN – the League’s series of three tournaments (THE TIPOFF, THE TURN and THE TICKET) that feature all 21 teams competing for banners. In addition to the 16 regular-season games, THE BANNER CHAIN tournaments staggered throughout the season help generate rivalries as teams compete for prize pools and one guaranteed spot in the playoffs for the winner of the final tournament, THE TICKET. Also, AT&T will create branded content for select NBA 2K League Twitch streams and will also present the “AT&T Game Day Show,” which will air in connection with THE BANNER CHAIN, the NBA 2K League Playoffs and the NBA 2K League Finals. For more about the 2019 NBA 2K League season, visit the NBA2K League website.
Bringing Fans More with Cloud9
Cloud9 is one of the most prominent esports organizations in the world with 17.4 million social media followers thanks to its 12 teams playing across a variety of platforms and titles including League of Legends, Fortnite, CS:GO, Apex Legends, and others. Through AT&T’s sponsorship of Cloud9, fans of its teams and its players will get more of esports insights in a new, weekly show – “The Nines,” launching later this year on Cloud9’s digital platforms – that will provide fans with team highlights, player profiles, a look at upcoming tournaments and other esports news from across the Cloud9 organization and its partners. AT&T will also appear on Cloud9 player jerseys and across its digital platforms. For more information, visit https://www.cloud9.gg/blogs/news/at-t-cloud9.
Giving Anyone a Chance to Make it to the Top
Starting this week, ESL Mobile Open presented by AT&T is a new three-season league that gives mobile esports players at all levels in the U.S. a chance to join the competition and show off their skills. The best of the best will earn a shot at glory on the main stages of some of the biggest esports events in 2019, including Dreamhack Dallas, ESL One New York, and Dreamhack Atlanta. The inaugural season includes the following games: Asphalt 9: Legends, Clash of Clans and PUBG MOBILE. For more information, visit ESL. In addition to providing on-site experiences for fans at ESL tournaments, the new league is another way AT&T is working with ESL since reaching an agreement in June 2018.
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