NewsWire: 2/20/21
- As interest in tackle football declines, the NFL and Nike are launching a $5 million campaign to promote girls’ flag football. The goal is to bring the sport to every high school in America and boost interest and viewership among women. (The Wall Street Journal)
- NH: Over 1M high school boys play tackle football every year. But for high school girls, that number is practically zero. The NFL and Nike are now trying to change that. The companies have teamed up to promote girls’ flag football through a new ad campaign.
- What is their goal? The NFL hopes that if high school girls play flag football, they will be more likely to watch the pros. This season's NFL viewership fell by 7% YoY, and the Super Bowl had its smallest audience since 2007. The league is now looking everywhere to find new and younger fans. (See "Youth Football Participation Takes a Hit" and "Kids' Sports Are a Ticking Time Bomb.")
- But flag football is ultimately part of the NFL's broader and long-standing campaign to make the sport safer. Over the last few years, the NFL has been pouring money into "NFL Flag." An estimated 500,000 boys and girls age 5 to 17 plan in this NFL-sanctioned league of flag teams (chaired by Seattle superstar Russell Wilson). The rules have been carefully thought out to avoid almost any contact. Again, the NFL hopes the safer version of the game will boost youth participation and result in more interest on the national level.
- IMO, this idea makes sense. We all loved playing backyard (touch or flag) football as kids. It didn't require expensive equipment, and no one got a concussion. I particularly think the parents of Homelanders will appreciate the emphasis on playability and safety. And by opening the sport to all genders, it introduces football as a first-person experience to that many more kids.
Did You Know?
- Figure Skating is On the Edge. At the 1994 Winter Olympics, 48.5 million viewers tuned in for the ladies figure skating short program. It was the highest-rated Winter Olympics event in history, and the sixth-highest-rated event in TV history. At the time, U.S. skating stars like Michelle Kwan, Tara Lipinski, and Nancy Kerrigan had become household names. But those days are gone. Figure skating is far less popular now: Only 21.4 million viewers watched any of the skating events at the 2014 Sochi Olympics. The top American skaters are overshadowed by formidable competitors from Russia and South Korea. As is the case with other competitive sports that lack much professional funding, training can run families tens of thousands of dollars per year. The sport also lost casual viewers after the Olympic scoring system was overhauled in 2004; instead of the famous 6.0, scores are now based on a more complicated multipart system that prioritizes technical skills over artistry.
