The National Football League (NFL) team, Carolina Panthers have secured a partnership with the UK-based sports partnership company, Eleven Sports Media. This will launch a solid partner program dedicated to the small business community in Carolina which is a first-its-kind in the NFL.
Following the partnership, the Panther’s home stadium, Bank of America Stadium, will become the first stadium in the premier American football tournament to have the UK company’s fan engagement technology. This provision from the entity will help the fans to get a surreal matchday experience, where they can think of a content-rich experience in and around the stadium concourse and the hospitality arena on the gameday.
Eleven will also play a key role in this partnership by supporting the Panthers Challenger Flag football initiative, a programme that gives kids and young adults of various abilities the golden opportunity to play flag football in a safe and structured environment.
Jake Burns, Panthers Chief Revenue Officer, said, “We’re incredibly excited to be the first NFL franchise to partner with Eleven and to bring the passion of our fans to the local small business community. We pride ourselves on being innovative, and first to market with new initiatives, and we’ve seen the success the Eleven products have had in the MLS. We’re excited to be the first to bring this to the NFL.
Burns also said, “We’re very proud of our Challenger program, and in supporting this Eleven is going to help us provide jerseys to our participants, which is only going to strengthen their connection to the program and ultimately help us grow it.”
Matt Cairns, Founder and CEO of Eleven Sports Media, stated, “We’ve always believed that our model is suited for all mainstream US sports, in particular the NFL. The NFL is the richest league in the world and therefore leaves very few partnership opportunities for small businesses to align themselves with their local team. The Eleven model bridges that gap between rights-holders and their small business communities, delivering an end-to-end purpose-built solution that integrates seamlessly into the wider partnership structure. From the first conversations with the Panthers, it was clear that there was a real sense of shared values, and the Panthers’ passion and commitment to their local business community is as strong as ours. Charlotte has recently ranked in the top-3 sporting cities in the US and it has a vibrant and thriving small business community ready to benefit from the power of sport and grow alongside the Carolina Panthers.”
Cairns further commented, “Eleven we believe in supporting teams on and off the field and contributing to communities that we serve in a positive and meaningful way. When we discussed the Panthers Challenger Flag program, we were blown away by the initiative and the impact it has made. We’re delighted to align our name to the initiative and play a leading role in the future of the project.”
Eleven Sports Media was founded in 2009 in the northwestern part of England, where the company focuses on developing high-value partnerships in the sporting landscape through fan engagement channels that can initiate growth in the local business communities.