New Balance forays into football market

New Balance has a sizeable reputation in sports footwear, to say the least. The company has played sponsor to events and players from cricket to softball to long-distance running, and with over one hundred years in the market, experience and prestige abound.

Last year, the business sought to up their game in the football market. As a sport expected to teeter on the bleeding edge of equipment and kits, New Balance needed to set the stage for its push in a big way.

Enter Fox Sports, who has made forays of its own as of late, working with partners from Emirates to Maybelline to AccorHotels. Powered by branded content from Fox Content Labs, the channel has staked new claims in opportunistic industries. The sports broadcast network reaches a reported 45 million households across 20 countries, so audience wasn’t going to be an issue. The campaign’s merchandise also fell quite naturally into place, featuring a stylish kit and new boots. Content, on the other hand, presented a challenge.

Seeking meaningful endorsements for New Balance’s fresh arsenal of products, Content Labs stretched the Fox Sports ecosystem to work for New Balance, digging into Fox Sports talent assets to land the right stars for the position. They came up big, welcoming Marouane Fellaini, Aaron Ramsey and Tim Cahill to act as the collective voice of the campaign.

The footballers were featured in a series of Content Labs-produced vignettes filmed internationally from Tokyo to London to Shanghai. The global nature of the project presented some hurdles in terms of logistics, but rather than constructing multiple film sets in different locations, Content Labs designed an innovative, portable set capable of travelling the world to deliver the high-octane vibe fans have come to love from Fox Sports.

The backdrop lighting was an especially impressive component of the undertaking, providing soft light filling the entire tailor-made pitch. The outfit made it possible to catch every action from every angle as Fellaini, Ramsey and Cahill broke in their New Balance gear on set.

Serving as the company’s entrance to the football market, the campaign has spurred further growth including marquee deals with Premier League players. The brand has also followed through with its goal to promote the sport on an international stage, sponsoring the NWSL’s 2017 top draft pick, Rose Lavelle, and backing Ireland’s FAI Junior Cup as headline sponsors.

In a crowded market like football, newcomers should expect quite a bit of groundwork to get their name and product into the conversation with other sportswear giants. Through their partnership with Fox Sports, New Balance rocketed onto the pitch, making the swift transition from rookie to industry stalwart.