How do I make a sports campaign lift spirits during a crisis?

When a crisis disrupts sport, a campaign can still draw on the emotions that make sport meaningful: shared anticipation, commitment, pride and collective support. The message needs to reflect the circumstances rather than pretend they do not exist. During Covid-19, Wimbledon marked its cancellation with We cheer for them, a film narrated by Roger Federer that encouraged people to come together by staying apart and honoured frontline workers. Nike's Play inside. Play for the world. similarly shifted attention from elite athletes to people staying active at home, placing audiences on the same team around a common cause. Crocs paired its response with practical support, offering healthcare workers a free pair of clogs. These examples show different ways a brand can turn a sporting context into reassurance, recognition or direct help.

Emotion can give sports communications relevance beyond match results, especially when the story reflects the determination, struggle and triumph that audiences associate with sport. Human stories help brands connect sporting energy to experiences people can recognise in their own lives. This is increasingly important as fan behaviour changes: younger audiences are shifting some allegiance from teams to individual athletes, while social media enables more personal connections with those athletes. Technology also enables sport to reach broader audiences in more personalised ways. For brands, the opportunity is to make the audience feel involved rather than merely addressed. A campaign about sports data, for example, can communicate technical capability while still recreating the immersion and rush associated with watching live sport.

An integrated sports campaign works when the central idea explains the brand's role in an experience fans already value. For Genius Sports, Built on Genius positioned the company at the centre of an ecosystem involving broadcasters, streamers, betting companies, teams and sponsors. The campaign used a flexible visual device to show how sports data affects different audiences, while keeping the fan at the heart of the action. It was delivered through a brand film and social campaign, allowing the idea to travel across formats. IBM's Wimbledon work also used multiple touchpoints, including campaign concepts, short-form video, VIP invitations and welcome materials. The appropriate mix depends on the audience and purpose, but each element should reinforce the same story rather than operate as a separate message.

Long-running sports partnerships create repeated opportunities to show a brand's contribution in fresh ways. IBM and Wimbledon have worked together for three decades, with the partnership introducing innovations for fans, broadcasters, players and the public. Campaign support has included celebrating the partnership's history, using live data and social listening to explore what greatness means, and explaining the technology that captures and communicates match moments. When Wimbledon was cancelled in 2020, the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club and IBM adapted with The Greatest Championships, using remastered iconic matches for modern, data-hungry fans. Supporting content focused on the role the partnership played in enabling that pivot. Ongoing support helps a partnership remain relevant as the event, audience expectations and technology evolve.