Vol. 24 | November 7th, 2024

Good Morning!

This week, we’re diving into our top five off-season college basketball partnerships. Leading the charge, Cooper Flagg and New Balance shake up the game for brands, setting new standards with major deals before athletes even go pro. Plus, Raising Cane’s welcomes 4 new stars to their powerhouse college roster.

— Jack Adler and Corey Bruno

📈 College Basketball’s Top Off-Season NIL Partnerships

This week marks the start of the college basketball season, and with off-season partnerships finalized, these five stood out as the top collaborations on social media. Headlined by true superstars, these collaborations showcase not only the immense social media influence of these athletes, but also how brands are creatively engaging audiences in fresh and exciting ways.

Partnership Insights:

New Balance X Cooper Flagg | 7.4M Reel Plays
Execution Breakdown: This heartwarming video marks the exciting partnership between Cooper Flagg and New Balance, highlighting him as a hometown hero in Maine.

StockX X Paige Bueckers | 3.7M Reel Plays
Executional Breakdown: Paige Bueckers and her stylist take us behind the scenes to break down her most memorable look from the ESPYs, as part of the their Ace Your Style segment.

Cerave X Paige Bueckers & KK Arnold | 3.5M Reel Plays
Executional Breakdown: In this video, Paige pranks her teammate KK Arnold by pretending she cleans her face with pickle juice—only to reveal the secret behind her flawless skin is actually CeraVe.

Nespresso X Azzi Fudd | 2.9M Reel Plays
Executional Breakdown: Azzi Fudd invites fans behind the scenes at a Nespresso coffee roasting event, where she plays a game of Pop-a-Shot and shares her favorite coffee flavor with viewers.

Fitness AI X Mikey Williams | 1.8M Reel Plays
Executional Breakdown: Mikey Williams gives us a firsthand look at how the FitnessAI app’s workout routine works for him at home, and encourages them to try it out using the link in his bio with his exclusive affiliate code.

Micro-Influencers For This College Basketball Season

Looking to partner with college athletes but don’t have the budget for top-tier names?

You’re not alone! Many brands on our platform have discovered that college athletes, with their high engagement levels, offer exceptional value over traditional influencers.

With our industry-leading data on over 200,000 athletes, you can quickly identify the top micro-influencers in just a few clicks.

And now there’s even more. Our latest update lets you find athletes not only by the audience they reach but also by the type of content they create.

Imagine: Show me athletes who reach an audience in Southwest Florida and make content about cooking.

Here are some of our favorite micro-influencers for this upcoming season:

Leverage our free trial and find micro influencers whose content aligns with your brand!

🇯🇵  The Most Marketable Baseball Player In The World

Shohei Ohtani just capped off one of the most iconic seasons in MLB history, hitting over 50 home runs, stealing more than 50 bases, and leading the Dodgers to a World Series victory. His influence was so profound that even Japanese sponsors secured ad space in opposing stadiums where Ohtani played throughout the season.

His unmatched global impact and on-field dominance will be analyzed and admired for generations to come.

Social Media Statistics:

8.6M Instagram Followers | 11.5% Engagement Rate | 24% Annual Follower Growth

Shohei has become the #1 followed MLB player, with a staggering 342% more followers than the second most followed, Mike Trout, at 2.2 million.

Mind-Blowing Marketability Stats:

• Attracted 12.1M viewers from Japan for Game 1 of the NLCS, more than the 8.1M viewers in the U.S. for that game.

• Ranked 1st in MLB jersey sales for the second consecutive year.

• His 50th home run ball sold for record-breaking $4.4M at auction.

• Has seen a 337% increase in followers since the start of the 2023 MLB season.

2024 Social Media Partnerships

New Balance | 34M Reel Plays
Executional Breakdown: Shohei showcased his partnership with New Balance in a viral short commercial, where he performed in their gear, quickly gaining traction across social media.

Hugo Boss | 9M Reel Plays
Executional Breakdown: After launching his own collection with Hugo Boss, Shohei featured the dynamic clothing in an engaging video highlighting the stylish collaboration.

Rapsodo | 7.9M Reel Plays
Executional Breakdown: Shohei announced his partnership with the baseball tech brand on Instagram, and since then, he’s become a key presence in videos across Rapsodo’s social channels.

Beats by Dre | 5.2M Reel Plays
Executional Breakdown: Shohei produces a quick yet effective ad spot for Beats, swinging the bat while wearing the company’s Powerbeats.

 🍗 Raising Cane’s Strategically Shapes Up Their NIL Roster

Raising Cane’s recently launched an exciting clothing collaboration with Sportique, aiming to expand their presence in the merchandise sector.

For this partnership, they tapped into a powerful yet familiar marketing strategy—enlisting student-athletes as brand ambassadors. The company selected four standout players, each with a strong following across multiple demographics, ensuring their campaign resonates with a diverse Gen-Z audience.

This strategic move allows Cane’s to organically grow its brand and connect with fans from all different background and locations.

Athlete Marketability Profiles:

Strategic Breakdown:

While many brands engage in NIL partnerships to focus on hyper-localized markets, Raising Cane’s takes a more expansive approach, partnering with athletes from across the country to drive its national growth. 

Each athlete in this collaboration brings a unique appeal, representing diverse follower demographics in terms of gender, ethnicity, and location. Yet, they all share one thing in common: follower growth, which they now bring as ambassadors for the Raising Cane’s brand.

Partnership Execution: Cane’s effectively brought these athletes together for a viral Instagram reel, which generated an impressive 1.4 million views in just one week. The campaign included a photoshoot featuring the athletes in the brand’s new clothing line, which was then repurposed for use on the company’s online store, showcasing the athletes as models and amplifying the brand’s visibility even further.

🎥 World Series Social Media Impact | Dodgers Vs. Yankees

With a roster filled with superstars, high-profile celebrity endorsements, a massive worldwide fanbase, and a proactive social media team, the Dodgers gained over 500K followers throughout the postseason.

Meanwhile, World Series MVP Freddie Freeman saw his own following soar by more than 370K. His stellar performance on the field, paired with his heartfelt personal story has generated widespread career high attention for the superstar.

World Series Social Media Matchup:
^{All Stats From Videos Posted From October 25th to October 30th}

Could any other team have capitalized on social media as effectively as the Dodgers did this year?

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