Why the NFL is Leaning So Hard on Creators - with Ian Trombetta

Summary

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Next in Media – "How the NFL Dominates the Creator Economy"

Guest: Ian Trombetta, SVP Social Influencer and Content Marketing, NFL
Host: Mike Shields
Date: January 20, 2026

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Episode Overview

This episode features Ian Trombetta, the NFL’s SVP of Social Influencer and Content Marketing, discussing how the league has strategically embraced the creator economy. The conversation covers the NFL’s approach to partnering with creators, engaging new and global fans, protecting its powerful brand, lessons from major collaboration initiatives, and what’s next for sports and media amid the rise of technology and AI. Ian also shares insights from his prior roles at Red Bull and Activision and reflects on the complexities and innovations required in the evolving landscape of sports marketing.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The NFL’s Evolving Approach to Social and Influencer Marketing

• Managing Global Channels and Content Team:

  • Ian leads all league social channels globally, including NFL accounts, NFL Network, and local channels in markets like Brazil and the UK. His remit now includes a growing influencer marketing team, player marketing, and club marketing groups.
  • “We also have within that a player group, a club marketing group and a variety of others that fit within, within that, that department…content creation on the advertising front…and a pretty scaled up content team out in LA.” (02:03–02:51)

• Creator Collaboration as a Strategic Priority:

  • Despite strong TV ratings, the NFL actively invests in the creator economy to connect with the next generation of fans, especially casual and international ones.
  • Creators help showcase non-sports sides of the league—fashion, gaming, lifestyle—driving engagement among youth and new global audiences.
  • “Creators are a great way to engage fans, especially those…more casual…who aren’t watching games on Sunday…It’s a great entry point for them.” (03:23–03:50)

2. Finding and Nurturing the Right Creators

• Identification and Early Partnership:

  • The NFL scouts emerging creators, aiming to build long-term relationships rather than one-off campaigns.
  • Example: The league’s early collaboration with streamer Kai Cenat before he hit mainstream fame.
  • "Our strategy has always been to get in as early as possible because…we can…showcase a ton of value for them…It’s that media exchange that we’re talking about.” (06:32–07:06)

• What Makes a Creator Right for the NFL:

  • Momentum, cultural relevance, and authentic connection with youth and sports culture are key, rather than just metrics or mainstream fame.
  • Example: Bringing rising creator Sketch to the NFL draft generated higher engagement than some drafted players.
  • “He outperformed any of the players who were drafted right at the draft.” (09:26–09:34)

3. How the NFL Integrates Creators

• Moving Beyond Simple Promotions:

  • Partnerships go far beyond “watch the game at 1pm” posts; creators are integrated across the NFL’s calendar for content, community engagement, and cause marketing.
  • Involvement spans everything from Super Bowl activations and NFL Shop product promotions to NFL-inspired cooking competitions and fashion shows.
  • “They’re really cutting through just about everything that we’re doing now in a great way, which is all going back to…reach…engagement and awareness.” (11:08–11:17)

• Brand Safety and Control:

  • Protecting the NFL brand is paramount. The league uses advanced listening and digital security tools—even monitoring the dark web—to manage risks with unpredictable live content.
  • “That’s a pretty robust set of tools and security teams that we have…looking at just all the different kind of conversation…not only happening…at the front door of the Internet, but also on the dark web.” (13:55–14:07)
  • Livestreams are flagged as moments of heightened risk for creators to go off-message.

4. Metrics, Challenges, and Industry Evolution

• Desire for Better Measurement:

  • The influencer space lacks standard metrics and transparency, especially regarding creator-owned data and ROI.
  • “I hope that there’s a more…general way for the industry to evaluate performance. I think that would be really helpful…It’s still sporadic to say the least.” (12:23–12:34)

• High-Touch Execution:

  • Unlike traditional TV ad buys, creator collaborations are resource-intensive and often require custom approaches.

• AI and Content Overload:

  • AI is reshaping content at a dizzying pace; the proliferation of content poses discoverability and effectiveness challenges.
  • “The AI dance is one that we’re always…Trying to stay kind of at the front of the line on that…The platforms are getting flooded now with more and more content. So how do you cut through that?” (29:38–30:16)

5. Highlights from the YouTube NFL Broadcast in Brazil

• Record-Breaking Engagement:

  • Simultaneous traditional and creator-driven alternative streams for the NFL’s first YouTube broadcast led to all-time streaming and social media records.
  • “We set the all-time streaming record for YouTube…well north of 17 million people watch live on that Friday night.” (18:36–18:41)

• Experimentation and Learnings:

  • NFL tried new formats, bringing creators like Ishowspeed into the live broadcast experience.
  • Plans to further personalize creator integrations and fine-tune promotional strategies for future international streams.
  • “There’ll be more opportunities…I think, to create more bespoke opportunities for creators. But being really, really targeted…and how we get those audiences…” (18:57–19:16)

6. Player Marketing & Players as Creators

• Expanding Player Brand Platforms:

  • NFL is increasing support for player social brands, tapping into fans’ curiosity about players’ lives, personalities, and causes.
  • “We have such a great opportunity from a league perspective to probably do more for our players than some of the other leagues…We only have 17 games…the guys are wearing helmets and they’re a little less recognizable.” (20:49–21:10)

• Notable Players Highlighted:

  • Jason Kelce (family/lifestyle content), Pat McAfee (media personality), Andrew Whitworth and Cam Heyward (community involvement) as examples of diverse player-driven narratives drawing in fans.
  • “Today it’s much more democratized…some of our most famous players today are not quarterbacks…That’s a really good thing for us.” (21:13–21:33)

7. Lessons from Red Bull, Activision, and Gaming

• Red Bull:

  • Mastery in athlete-driven storytelling turned niche athletes into mainstream personalities through serial digital content.
  • “There’s all kinds of opportunity with storytelling around interesting people who are doing fascinating things…and also weave in the product in a really interesting way.” (23:14–24:20)

• Activision:

  • “There’s such a premium on community…That’s really going to make or break the success…We paid a lot of attention on serving those communities, especially online…” (24:33–25:02)

• Game Worlds (Roblox, Fortnite, Metaverse):

  • Brand integration in gaming is challenging and requires long-term investment, not one-off appearances.
  • “The main thing…I think any brand sort of underestimates within gaming is the…quality bar is so high…You’ve got to have a full-on business wrapped around that.” (25:47–26:15)

8. Super Bowl 2026 and the Creator Explosion

• A Massive Creator Rollout:
  • Plans for 150+ creators on-site, with integrations spanning EA collaborations, YouTube, influencers for NFL Honors, music, fashion, and cause programming.
  • “We definitely plan on having more creators on site, activating with us than, than ever…So many different partners are going to be activating either directly with us or indirectly with creators and influencers.” (28:02–28:25)

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Brand–Creator Fit:

  • “Our secret sauce has really been all about creating long term relationships with these creators and…working with them at the very early stages of their growth.” – Ian Trombetta (05:42–06:23)

• On Live Streaming:

  • “Just imagine that every single day for hours with, with a ton of people…it’s a hell of a way to make a living.” – Ian Trombetta (14:35–14:43)

• On Brand Safety:

  • “That’s a pretty robust set of tools and security teams…looking at just all the different kind of conversation…also on the dark web.” – Ian Trombetta (13:55–14:07)

• On Industry Change:

  • “If anybody tells you they know where [AI in content] is going, it seems to be changing every day. I need to meet that person.” – Ian Trombetta (29:39–29:45)

• On Player Storytelling:

  • “There’s all kinds of opportunity with storytelling around interesting people who are doing fascinating things…” – Ian Trombetta (23:14–23:16)

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Key Timestamps for Important Segments

• 01:35 – Ian Trombetta’s NFL remit and team structure
• 03:23 – Why creators matter, even for the NFL
• 05:32 – How the NFL finds, vets, and nurtures creators
• 09:26 – Sketch at the NFL Draft: creators’ impact
• 10:27 – The NFL’s multi-pronged approach to creator collaboration
• 11:37 – League-wide buy-in and the “heartbeat” of creators
• 12:23 – Measurement and industry challenges
• 13:31 – Brand safety and digital risk management
• 17:28 – Inside the YouTube/NFL Brazil broadcast
• 20:42 – NFL players as emerging creators and personalities
• 23:14 – Lessons from Red Bull and Activision
• 25:47 – How gaming and the metaverse challenge brands
• 28:02 – Super Bowl 2026: creator and partner activations
• 29:38 – AI, content proliferation, and future challenges

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Tone & Style

Ian’s commentary is conversational, enthusiastic, and often candid—emphasizing both the massive opportunity and day-to-day realities behind the NFL’s creator partnerships. The discussion is optimistic but clear-eyed about complexity, with a consistent focus on authenticity, community, and innovation. Mike Shields brings an appreciative, slightly wry perspective, keeping the conversation accessible and practical.

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This summary offers a comprehensive yet engaging guide to the conversation, with structured insights and actionable takeaways for anyone interested in the future of sports, creators, and marketing at global scale.

Transcript

[Ian Trombetta]

There's all kinds of opportunity with storytelling.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Around interesting people who are doing fascinating things.

[Ian Trombetta]

And they may have been limited before.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

But today with the Internet, there's all.

[Ian Trombetta]

Kinds of potential to tell those stories.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

And also weave in the product in.

[Ian Trombetta]

A really interesting way.

[Podcast Host or Narrator]

Yeah.

[Ian Trombetta]

I think just as it relates to content as a whole, I think the AI Dance is one. I think everybody, if anybody tells you they know where that's going. It seems to be changing every day. I need to meet that person.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

They're so talented, these live streamers. They do such a great job. I mean, you think about what that's like when you're live streaming every day, and that's a hell of a way to make a living.

[Mike Shields]

I'm tired from this 10 minutes we've been doing here.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

I don't know how to do. Exactly.

[Mike Shields]

Exactly.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Just imagine that. Every single day for hours.

[Podcast Host or Narrator]

This week on NEXT Immediate, I spoke with Ian Trombetta. He's the SVP of social influencer and content marketing for the NFL. Ian and I talked about how the league finds the right creators to both promote and protect its brand, how younger fans are consuming sports. Ian and I also talked about his previous stops at Red Bull and Activision. Last week, we talked about what it was like to work with YouTube on its first NFL broadcast. Let's get started.

[Mike Shields]

Hi, everybody. I'm Mike Shields. Welcome to Next in Media. My guest this week is Ian Trombetta. He's SVP of social and influencer marketing for the NFL. Hey, Ian, thanks for being here.

[Ian Trombetta]

Great to be here.

[Mike Shields]

Excited to talk to you. It's an awesome time to talk to you right in the middle of playoff mania and harbor mania and here in New York, which is not really where we're going with this, but give us a little. A quick. You have one of those jobs where people are like, that sounds like an awesome job. Yeah. What does that entail? Are you the. Are you the person that handles social marketing for the league? Is that also working with creators? Is it. Give us a little of your parameters.

[Ian Trombetta]

Yeah. So I'm pushing eight years here at the NFL. I came out of a video game and energy drink background, but my remit here is really aimed at social media first and foremost. So oversee the league channels globally. So that's all of our, obviously our.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Primary league channels, whether that be NFL account, NFL Network, and then we have.

[Ian Trombetta]

A myriad of different global channels in.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Different markets like Brazil and the UK and so forth. So we oversee those.

[Ian Trombetta]

And then I also oversee the influencer.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Marketing team, which we created about eight.

[Ian Trombetta]

Years ago now and has increasingly moved.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

More into this creator space as YouTube and Snapchat and these different platforms have taken on more of a significant role with culture. We've continued to evolve that program in some pretty exciting ways. And then we also have within that a player group, a club marketing group and a variety of others that fit within, within that, that department. And then the last, the last piece is on the content side. So we're doing a lot of the content creation on the advertising front and all the way through to vertical social video through a pretty, a pretty scaled up content team out in la. Right, that's, that's my group.

[Mike Shields]

That's a lot of stuff. So I think, you know, it's, it's obvious, I think it's obvious to most people the, the, the, the league, most sports leagues are going to go hard into marketing their, the sport and the games with, with on social platforms for sure. You might argue that like, does the NFL even need to dig to wrap their arms around this creator thing when the, when the TV business is so strong, you're on so many different platforms, like things are great right now. Yeah, you need to go there. But it seems like it's pretty important. Why is that? What's your thinking?

[Ian Trombetta]

I think it's important for a variety of reasons. The first being, I think any brand, let's just start there. It has an eye towards that next generation of consumers and in our case, fans. Right. So when we think about our fan base, creators are a great way to engage fans, especially those who might be what we consider more casual fans, fans who aren't watching games on Sunday on CBS or NBC, et cetera. Creators can be a great entry point for them to kind of showcase different aspects of the NFL that might be of interest around fashion or gaming or different areas that, that might pull them in to drive interest around a team, around a certain player, things like that. So creators are great in that sense. They typically over index with younger audiences. And as we continue to scale globally now, we're looking at all the international growth which has been a big focus for us over the last couple years. In particular, creators obviously have no borders. In many cases they're the big global creators like Mr. Beast and Nishowspeed or there's amazing creators in each of these countries that we're actively prioritizing. And so working with them on the ground in places like Sao Paulo or Dublin is just another great way for us to engage those communities and in many cases introduce them to football for the first time. So lots of different purposes. And now we can also weave in brand partners as well, much more easily than we were maybe five, six years ago. You know, super bowl is a great example. We're working with dozens of partners with creators on the ground in San Francisco, and it can fit so many different needs that not only we have, but the partners have as well.

[Mike Shields]

All right, definitely want to come back to the super bowl stuff. The question, I mean, every brand, I think, wrestles with this to a degree or their agencies. There's a lot of creators, there's tons of big numbers thrown at you on the different platforms. How do you find the right ones without going to the top 10 that everybody sees and making sure that they are right for the brand? Because you don't want to mess. That's the trick, right? You don't want to mess with your product, but you want creators to be themselves. How do you find them and how do you figure out who's right?

[Ian Trombetta]

Yeah, so we find them in a few different ways. I think the identification is really important. So for us, our social team and our influencer teams are really tapped into culture.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

So they're typically ahead of a lot of the dashboards or different things you might be seeing through the media or otherwise. And they're bringing in, here's an interesting creator that might have a different spin on sports or might have an interesting spin on one of our players. So starting to just look at and identify what that content is. We're always looking to bring new creators into the fold as well as some of the more established ones as well. So our secret sauce has really been all about creating long term relationships with these creators and hopefully working with them at the very early stages of their growth. A really good example of that is someone like Kai Sanat we've been working with now for, I think, close to five, six years.

[Mike Shields]

So people, he's become, he's broken out in the broader consciousness more recently. But you guys were with him early. Like he's doing. He's the guy that does these epic streams, right?

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Yeah, he does these marathon streams and he's, he's someone that's, you know, now at the Grammy Awards and doing all kinds of different commercial work and otherwise. Our, our strategy has always been to get in as early as possible because I think that's where we can also showcase a ton of value for them. Right. We can expose them to a much wider audience. So for, for us, it's that media exchange that we're talking about. We can offer a ton of through linear, through streaming, through our owned and operated channels. And we know that they offer a lot too. So with that we've always been of the mind that we want them to be themselves and we want them to be as creative as possible. Because for us, the win is they're engaging their audiences and their communities in great ways that, that pull the NFL in, not that we're forcing them into a box and having to kind of force feed their audience. It's not going to work, particularly with the type of things that they're used to doing. That's gone. That's really come a long way. So I think even now today, our partners, and I'm not going to single any partner out in particular, but I think now many brands, especially the bigger, more scaled up brands that have really sophisticated ways of looking at roi, understand that the ROI first and foremost comes off of the organic reach that they can drive on their channels. And in order to do that, the content's got to be great. So we're always looking for ways, opportunities to create great content that also fit some initiatives that we're trying to, to fill in as well.

[Mike Shields]

So a couple questions there. I think you, you're. I hear that all the time from cre. The bigger creators don't want to do like a one off thing anymore. They, they like the longer term partnerships. Seems like it's best for both parties. But how do you like, with a guy like Kaisana or someone like that, how do, what do you, what were you looking for? Because you don't know this person is going to explode necessarily. No, what are you, are you looking for like a particular engagement level community? Is it just the guy's talent? Like are there certain things you're looking for early on to partner with somebody?

[Ian Trombetta]

Yeah, I think, I think momentum has a lot to do with it. Right. Because the way that the Internet's moving and the way a lot of these platforms are moving, there's something to be said for just that, that salience or that momentum that that creators have. Just like a brand, right? Yeah, there's a, there's a wave that you can catch with different creators. And in some cases, like with Mr. Beast, it just continues on and on and on. And in others they go through different cycles and ups and downs. And you know, from our standpoint, we want to be there at the kind of the front edge of that to say we have our pulse on culture. And I think especially youth understands that they know who's really coming up. And there are so many different Examples where I could talk about that, but one that really stands out is someone like Sketch. When Sketch was really taking off and kind of taking over culture, we had him at our draft in Detroit. And I mean, the response that we got and the engagement we saw from Sketch, he outperformed any of the players who were drafted right at the draft.

[Mike Shields]

Which is, which is. That's. That's gotta be funny. But tougher. Like some of these big ego folks are like expecting to be doored.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Yeah, yeah.

[Ian Trombetta]

It's a, it's. But it's a great thing because in many cases we were creating content with Sketch and those players. Right. So it's a win for everybody in the sense that we're sharing audiences, they.

[Mike Shields]

Can Draft fandom and so. And vice versa.

[Ian Trombetta]

Exactly. And so then how does that. So from Detroit, he's obviously, you know, continued on and we actually had him in our Mr. Beast video to kick off the season this year as part of the promotion for Brazil with our first YouTube stream.

[Mike Shields]

Right.

[Ian Trombetta]

So there's all kinds of opportunities throughout the year that we're looking to fill in and find ways to really work with the right creator at the right time.

[Mike Shields]

And we're talking about a lot of different executions. Is there a. Like when people, or if people are trying to understand how you, how you work with creators, is it. It doesn't sound like it's just mostly pushing out, hey, watch the Bears game at 1:00 on Sunday.

[Ian Trombetta]

Yeah.

[Mike Shields]

Like these, these are. Either you're bringing them to events or you're creating stuff with them. Like what. Is there a standard way of operating with creators? Is it always. Is it kind of always unique?

[Ian Trombetta]

Well, I think for us it's the nice thing for, for me, I guess just in terms of the longevity that I hope to have, that the way in which we're working with creators today, it really permeates throughout the league now. Whereas before it was more isolated to just social content and filling in different initiatives we might have for a certain.

[Mike Shields]

Temple, like the draft or more tactical.

[Ian Trombetta]

More tactical and more very specific initiative based. Today we're working with creators on things like our cause marketing to support different causes with inspire, change. Some of the things we're doing there, we're working with them on big events like super bowl. We're working with them on our campaigns like NFL plus to drive our D2C product.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Right.

[Ian Trombetta]

I mean, I can just NFL shop to drive our consumer products business. They're really cutting through just about everything that we're doing now in a great way which is all going back to driving reach, driving engagement and awareness of whatever the initiative or the product might be. So I'm really, I'm pleased with the, with the progress we're making and certainly from the top down, from the commissioner level all the way down, I think there's a, an understanding now of the.

[Mike Shields]

Value people their league is bought in maybe in a place.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

100. Yeah, 100.

[Ian Trombetta]

And partners like YouTube being more, you know, continue to grow with us with Sunday Ticket and now streaming live games for the first time as they continue to grow their presence within the NFL. Creators are obviously the heartbeat of that platform and that always kind of serves the same.

[Mike Shields]

Yeah. Now generally speaking this kind of work is. Is high touch and not that easy to. It's not as easy as buying a bunch of pre rolls in YouTube or buying TV spots. Again generally speaking, how do you. Are there things you're missing? Like do you wish it was easier to execute? Would you love better metrics, better standard, you know, kind of units? You could or is it always going to be sort of custom in the way it, the way it is.

[Ian Trombetta]

I hope that there's a more I.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Think.

[Ian Trombetta]

General way for the industry to evaluate performance. I think that would be really helpful.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

It's still sporadic I think to say the least.

[Ian Trombetta]

I think it would be great if we could get more access.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

I think everyone wants more access to the influencer or creators data without infringing on their privacy which is always a big thing. We don't want to push too far because you know, in many cases that's.

[Ian Trombetta]

Their channel and they.

[Mike Shields]

Right, that's their super valuable and proprietary and all that but.

[Ian Trombetta]

Right, exactly. So I think there's work to be.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

To be done there. But for us, I think we also have as a, as a league we.

[Ian Trombetta]

Have a lot of advantages in the sense that we've got a lot of.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Different listening tools around social media that I, I don't think many brands have.

[Ian Trombetta]

Which gives us a really good indication.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Of video volume and consumption across the Internet. It gives us a really good sense of sentiment. And then we also have a GSOC department which is basically another way of saying we have a digital security department.

[Ian Trombetta]

Which is all over anything that could be problematic.

[Mike Shields]

That was going to be my next question is how do you. Every brand is worried about that but the NFL does not want to mess with this brand and creators are unpredictable. How do. So you are on top of making sure that these things don't go awry.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Yeah, we are and for me that's.

[Mike Shields]

Not Just an intern clicking, watching a bunch of videos. Like you had to do it.

[Ian Trombetta]

No, no, no, that's a, that's a.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Pretty robust set of tools and security teams that we have that's looking at just all the different kind of conversation that's not only happening kind of at the front door of the Internet, but also on the dark web.

[Mike Shields]

Yeah.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Just to see kind of what, what's, what's going on there. The, I think the, the biggest area that I've, I've personally witnessed with creators where they, they might step into some things at times is during live streams where they don't have time to edit.

[Podcast Host or Narrator]

Yeah.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

And they're so talented. These, these live streamers, they do such a great job. I mean, you think about what that's like when you're live streaming every day and that's a hell of a way to make a living.

[Mike Shields]

I'm tired from this 10 minutes we've been doing here.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

So.

[Mike Shields]

Yeah, I don't know how to do it exactly.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Exactly. Just imagine that every single day for hours with, with a ton of people. Right. So I think that's, that's honestly there might be things in there where they might say something that's off color or they might, they might do something that's offensive in some way. So that's for us, probably the one area that we, we try to stay on top of as much as we can. But it's, it's, you know, it's challenging to say the least.

[Mike Shields]

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[Mike Shields]

So you hinted at this. This is not just you promoting the league. It sounds like you're bringing some of your brand partners along for the ride in many cases. What are there good examp.

[Ian Trombetta]

Yeah, I mean there, I mean so many different examples of that just at Super Bowl. I'll give you a little sampling. We're working with EA with creators like RDC or work obviously with YouTube and creators with our flag football game. And we've got a ton of creators that are going to be a part of that. We're working with our NFL honors programming, which is the Thursday night showcase for our Walter man of the Year award, mvp, et cetera. We'll have creators like Drewski a part of that. So literally everything that we're doing is kind of cutting across and partners now today, especially being in Silicon Valley, in San Francisco for Super bowl, so many different partners are going to be activating either directly with us or indirectly with creators and influencers as a really fundamental part of how they showcase their brands and everything happening around Super Bowl.

[Mike Shields]

I do, I do have another super bowl question, but just want to come back to the. You know, you guys made a hit. It was a big moment this year for the league and the, and the, the digital media landscape with, with the first game on, on YouTube and Brazil. You hinted at that. Yeah, you guys had the traditional broadcast and also creator alternative streams and then there was a lot of marketing. Tell, tell me like what you guys learned from that. It was because that had to be hard to figure out exactly who can carry an NFL broadcast and bring it in fandom. All those things are fascinating.

[Ian Trombetta]

Yeah. I gotta give our broadcast team a lot of credit and I obviously give YouTube a lot of credit. I think the integrity of the stream and the ambition was phenomenal. I also love being in that environment in the sense that we were trying a lot of new things. We were doing different alt streams and watch alongs with different creators like Ishowspeed in the stadium. We had the Haley Khalils and others that were doing vertical video streams live in and around the stadium environment. We also had destroying on the sideline. It was, it was really, it was for me refreshing to see that we were, we were bringing the YouTube world into the NFL world in a, I think a really cool way, an authentic way.

[Mike Shields]

But then that dads like me still got my, my Kurt Warner radio broadcast.

[Ian Trombetta]

Yeah, exactly. You still got your avid, you know, football and I was actually, you know, seeing Marshawn lynch and Cam Newton and these guys down there. There was still, I mean it was still football. Don't get me wrong, but there was also some cues and I think some nods to the YouTube audience as well.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

So what, what did that lead to?

[Ian Trombetta]

We set the all time streaming record.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

For YouTube which was great.

[Ian Trombetta]

We had well north of 17 million people watch live on that Friday night. In addition, we set the social media record for YouTube while we were down there.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

So lots of fantastic engagement, obviously global scale.

[Ian Trombetta]

And you know, I think we certainly.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Learned some things along the way. Even now going back and looking at it, there'll be more opportunities, I think, to create more bespoke opportunities for creators. But being really, really targeted and specific as to how we promote them and how we get those audiences that we think are going to be most interested in, in those specific creators and the.

[Ian Trombetta]

Types of things they'll be doing and.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Then obviously going as mass as we can. Right.

[Mike Shields]

Yeah. Because it's sort of in a way is, I mean it's an opportunity to redefine what an NFL broadcast is.

[Podcast Host or Narrator]

Right.

[Mike Shields]

Without going too far. So it'll be fascinating to see what happens next with that.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

With your.

[Ian Trombetta]

And certainly I think the tip of.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

The iceberg of, you know, our ambition and everything we're hoping to do and working with a partner like YouTube, it does give us the opportunity to test and learn in a few different areas while mitigating some of the risk as well. So I think as we continue to expand globally, creators again are a great way for us to bring in different markets and different fans who may know a little less about the game than maybe our primary US audience.

[Mike Shields]

What about the. You hear a lot more about the player. I mean, first of all, if you go to ad industry events especially can you. All of a sudden there's NFL players all over the place like they've never been before and you're.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

You might have had something to do with that.

[Mike Shields]

Yeah, yeah. I, I got some great pictures when I was. For my kids, like, oh look, Joe Burrow is here. This is insane. But like that. There's a lot of talk about those guys being either borrowing tactics from creators or being a new. Another version of creators. Yeah. Are you guys involved in that? Is that, is that individual? And like what are brands obviously are looking to Glamont as well. What does that look like for you right now?

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Yeah, I mean the player marketing and player brand presence, social presence is something that we're very involved in.

[Ian Trombetta]

I think just the.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

If you take a big step back and look at it from a macro view, we have such a great opportunity from a league perspective to probably do more for our players than some of the other leagues, frankly. And I say that only because we only have 17 games, right? And out of those 17 games, the guys are wearing helmets and they're a little less recognizable.

[Mike Shields]

You don't see their face like all night like an NBA player or whatever.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

That's right. And you've got rosters of 53 guys. And you know, there's so there's a lot going on and you know, for us, I think there's. There are so many things we can do to offer the fans more access to the players. And I do think there's such a fascination with NFL players because of it's a physical game, it's a tough game. These are very tough guys. They're strong guys. But at the same time, when you're getting this other look at as to what they're all about, whether that be with their families like the Kelsey's. Jason Kelsey is a really good example of that with Kylie and the kids and you know, everything that he's built. Then you've got guys like Pat McAfee and everything that he's done and, and what's interesting now, and I think it's really a positive sign for the league, is that some of our most famous players today are not quarterbacks. Um, they, I mean certainly the quarterbacks get a lot of attention. That's great. And receivers get a lot of attention. That's great. Um, but today it's much more democratized in terms of nations coming in. Um, and that's, that's a really good thing for us. And you know, I, I think of a guy like Andre, Andrew Whitworth is a really good example. Cam Hayward's a really good example. These guys are doing incredible things in their communities and we want as many people as possible to know about them and, and share, you know, what is that work and who are these guys.

[Ian Trombetta]

You know, behind the face mask and so anyhow, as we think about the can and the international component, we definitely want to continue to push in that direction. Fashion's one of those things we're going to lean into and hopefully showcase the guys and all the things they're up to as well.

[Mike Shields]

I want to ask you, you've had a. But before the NFL, you had a couple of really interesting stops. I think you mentioned Activision, Red Bull, companies that are known for being, you know, pretty forward thinking in digital content. There's a lot more talk about a renaissance of brands, either really latching onto creators or becoming creators themselves and getting into content. What, where do you think that might be headed and what do you remember from those places that would be applicable to.

[Podcast Host or Narrator]

Applicable?

[Ian Trombetta]

Yeah, I think first, starting with Red Bull. Red Bull was really, I think, ahead of the curve when it came to athlete marketing in particular. And. And if you think about how Red Bull's roots. It was an action sports and no one knew who an action sport athlete was. Right. Like a skater.

[Mike Shields]

No. Unless you were really hardcore into that.

[Ian Trombetta]

Right. Like you didn't really know who some of these people were. And through the content and a lot of the serialized content that started to emerge on YouTube and some of the early platforms like Facebook and others, those athletes got so much recognition and their awareness went well beyond just the snowboarding community or the base jumping community and started to get much more mass. I think for Red Bull that was a big, big learning for me is that there's. There's all kinds of opportunity with storytelling around interesting people who are doing fascinating things and. And they may have been limited before.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

But today with the Internet, there's all.

[Ian Trombetta]

Kinds of potential to tell those stories.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

And also weave in the product in.

[Ian Trombetta]

A really interesting way. So Red Bull, that's probably the fundamental thing.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

There are many with that brand that.

[Ian Trombetta]

Are fascinating, but that's one. And with Activision, I think it was.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Really kind of similar to the NFL.

[Ian Trombetta]

In the sense that there's such a premium on community. And when you think about those games.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Like Call of Duty or Destiny and.

[Ian Trombetta]

So many others, it comes down to.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

The player base and the community and.

[Ian Trombetta]

How vibrant that is. And that's really going to make or break the success of that, that year's title.

[Podcast Host or Narrator]

Sure.

[Ian Trombetta]

And for us, we paid a lot.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Of attention on serving those communities, especially.

[Ian Trombetta]

Online, and really making sure that they understood what was happening with the game.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

What they would look forward to. Different, different drops and things that were happening in the game. And you saw just the power of that and how. How excited they were, number one. But just how they also connected together. And I think there's a lot of parallels to the NFL in our teams and players and how fans connect to them and the. And just the passion and interest around the sport.

[Mike Shields]

Speaking of gaming, that's always been an area where it's been. Brands feel like they got to do more, but it's never easy to crack.

[Ian Trombetta]

Yeah.

[Mike Shields]

And now, of course, more than ever.

[Ian Trombetta]

Like sports, it was like esports.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Esports, Esports.

[Mike Shields]

And now, now there's such a huge community of Roblox and Fortnite in particular. Have you thought about that as a league how do you, how do you get into that world? Is that an, is that an area that is tough to squeeze into? What's kind of what you're thinking there?

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Yeah, I think the, the main thing I think any brand sort of underestimates within gaming is the just the quality bar is so high and in order to, to maintain a presence within those games as open world games, which so many of them are now, you've got to have a full on business wrapped around that. Right. To really sustain the engagement. And I think what was interesting with the metaverse and all of that, that kind of blew up out of nowhere and now everyone's in the metaverse and there was a lot of interesting little pop ups. But when it came down to do you have a studio that's going to be actively creating this content and looking ahead.

[Mike Shields]

Right. You're not done when you just put something in there and walk away. Yeah.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

And I think that's the thing that most brands underestimate and I think Frank, the thing that we similar to creators really. Exactly. 100%. And so for us as we look at gaming, we don't want to just be a flash in the pan. We want sustained engagement and we are looking at a variety of opportunities and we've done some nice work with Roblox, we've done some nice work with Fortnite and a variety of other games. I think from where I said it's really how do we create that sustained presence And I think interestingly creating more casual games, mobile first games, especially with flag football being a growing kind of initiative and focus for us.

[Mike Shields]

It's going to be in the Olympics.

[Ian Trombetta]

Yeah.

[Ian Trombetta (continued or colleague)]

Probably some opportunities for us to lean even further.

[Mike Shields]

Interesting couple more for me. And so get back getting spent getting back to the super bowl which is going to be upon us pretty quickly here. You know, it sounds like you've got a bigger presence.

[Ian Trombetta]

Who's your, who's your pick?

[Mike Shields]

That's good. I mean this could be dangerous because we're recording this and the weekend's going to happen before this. I think the bills, this is not logical but I feel like they're finally going to break through.

[Podcast Host or Narrator]

It's just like the moment.

[Ian Trombetta]

I think, I think most of America would be good with that.

[Mike Shields]

I think that'd be, I mean I think that'd be a fun one to watch. But don't, don't, don't take that to the bank or anything.

[Ian Trombetta]

Love Josh Allen.

[Mike Shields]

Yeah. But I think so when it comes to the creators in the super bowl are we Going to notice a huge presence this year when we tune in. Is it going to be all over the different platforms? Which would we be looking for?

[Ian Trombetta]

Yeah, I think it's going to be, it's going to be amazing. We definitely plan on having more creators on site, activating with us than, than ever. So we're talking well north of 150creators. Just that we're, that we're actively working with. That's not to mention all of our partners. And otherwise, I think NBC is going to do some really cool stuff. You look towards the Olympics and some of the things that we're going to be doing to cross promote the Olympics with the Super Bowl, I think there would be some really, really cool stuff there as well. And then for us, I think the opportunities, especially being in Silicon Valley with all those tech partners and I'll lead with YouTube, just opportunities, glory for us throughout the week, not just on Sunday to promote the game and otherwise, but to really think about all the different ways. So we'll have things like NFL season, which is a cooking competition with creators. We're going to have fashion shows. We're going to have all kinds. Obviously music is a big part of it. So, I mean, so many different aspects that we can showcase just the, I think all the fantastic things that surround the NFL and hopefully that's engaging for fans, especially those around the world. And clearly with the halftime show that we have this year, we expect the global reach to be really, really something special.

[Mike Shields]

Yeah, that should be fat. That should be wild to watch. I mean, lastly, you may have covered some of this already, but what is your biggest challenge right now in the creator media space, either for you guys specifically, or brands and media companies? What do you think's the most thing you got to get to have?

[Ian Trombetta]

Yeah, I think just as it relates to content as a whole, I think the AI dance is one that we're always. I think everybody, if anybody tells you they know where that's going, it seems to be changing every day. I need to meet that person. So trying to stay kind of at the, at the front of the line on that as it relates to how the platforms and creators are employing AI and then just the proliferation of content, I think that's something that we're seeing is that the platforms are getting flooded now with more and more content. So how do you cut through that? It's going to become even more challenging unless you have paid boosting and otherwise behind it. So those are a few things I, you know, I'm hopeful that we'll continue to really lean into those spaces and find ways to evolve and adapt as we need to, knowing that we are a big league. And sometimes it's tougher to move, maybe as fast as a smaller company. But we definitely want to stay agile.

[Mike Shields]

All right. Well, good luck for the next crazy couple of weeks. Ian, thanks so much for your time here, and let's do this again someday.

[Ian Trombetta]

Yeah. Excellent. Great talking with you and enjoy the playoffs.

[Mike Shields]

Thank you.

[Ian Trombetta]

Cheers.

[Mike Shields]

Thanks again to my guest this week.

[Podcast Host or Narrator]

The NFL's Ian Trombetta and my partners at SAO.

[Mike Shields]

If you like this episode, please take.

[Podcast Host or Narrator]

A moment to rate and leave a review. We have lots more to bring you.

[Mike Shields]

So please hit that subscribe button.

[Podcast Host or Narrator]

We'll see you next time for more on what's Next in media.

[Ian Trombetta]

Thanks for listening.