High schools across the nation are starting classes for the year, and high school football players will soon hit the field under the bright lights of every Friday night. This season, Adidas and Twitter plan to screen their efforts nationwide.
The sports apparel and sneaker company and the social media behemoth have teamed up to introduce a series of top high school football matchups across the country called “Friday Night Stripes.” The first game will be live-streamed on Twitter via @adidasFballUS on Sept. 7, featuring two championship-caliber teams in Georgia.
“Combining the passion and excitement of high school football with a premium live video experience from Twitter exemplifies how adidas is the brand that truly fuses sports and culture,” said Jeff McGillis, Adidas’ VP of U.S. Sports, in an announcement on Tuesday. “Friday Night Stripes provides a unique digital stage for the next generation of football players to showcase their skills and an opportunity for adidas to build and share football culture across the globe.”
The series will feature eight games, one for each week of the high school football season. ESPN/SEC Network announcer Courtney Lyle and former Packers linebacker A.J. Hawk will do the play-by-play and analysis, the announcement revealed. YouTuber Cameron Magruder will report from the sidelines, and various guests (including Adidas-endorsed NFL athletes) will make appearances.
“High school football fans view Twitter as an indispensable tool to follow what’s happening—whether it’s the national recruiting stage or their local communities, every Friday night, we see players, teams, coaches, alumni, and fans embrace this passionate culture,” said Andrew Barge, Twitter’s head of sports broadcast partnerships, in the press release. “We’re thrilled to partner with adidas and Intersport to help fulfill this massive and untapped opportunity. Both have established credibility as creators in the high school sports arena, and with Twitter’s engaged audience, we’re excited to deliver eight live games that celebrate the unique, community-based passion for high school football on a national level.”
SportTechie Takeaway
Twitter has the potential to reach a massive audience of high school football players and fans across the country. The social platform has played host recently to an increasing number of sports live streams, including AS Roma, the WNBA, and a series of long-form programming through content partnerships with ESPN (SCLive) and Uninterrupted (NBA Finals halftime shows). During the World Cup this summer, Twitter facilitated much of the conversation with Man of the Match voting and instant goal highlights and analysis. Twitter’s involvement in pro sports has helped it reach millions of fans and garner record numbers of impressions.