3 Days ago the MLS dropped the launch of their new 2023 season brand campaign. “Our Soccer, Our Way” is an exciting opportunity in the league’s efforts to reach fans and specially a young and diverse segment through Social Media platforms such as: Instagram, Twitter, TikTok and the top used video platform by genZs YouTube. With a focus on players like Zimmerman, Vela , Chicharito & Ferreira the league is announcing the new 2023 season that is going to be available through Apple TV and is poised to tap into a massive and growing market, especially in the United States and Canada, but also all around the world.
Social Media and Youtube Channels
We would like to talk about how they deployed a campaign using mainly social media posts last Wednesday. Social media has become an essential tool for the league looking to connect with consumers, and the launch of Our Soccer, Our Way is no exception. Platforms like Instagram and Twitter are excellent for building brand awareness, with their large user base and the ability to reach a targeted audience, the MLS has an organic community of 2.1M followers in Instagram. The league executed eye-catching visual video featuring MLS stars and dynamic soccer moves, fans and clubs to create buzz around the upcoming season and get people ready for kick-off week.
According to research around Genzs, YouTube is the platform with the most interest among this segment, and in particular, offers plenty of opportunities for reaching a young and diverse audience. The platform has over 2 billion monthly active users, making it one of the largest video-sharing platforms in the world. Our Soccer, Our Way video was published through the YouTube channel with 805K subscribers and for sure will be supported with a paid media plan to be the pre-roll video around the platform in short snackable cuts of 15, 30 and 45 seconds to catch the interest and awareness in short attention spans.
Influencers and Players
For new campaigns the best is to collaborate with popular content creators and influencers. Noah Beck has been one of the most used influencers by the League, being an authentic and effective storyteller that shares and amplifies the content to target new audiences. He has 8.8M followers on IG and 34.1M on TikTok, with 2.4B Likes. We should not forget the power of soccer players and their followers for this type of campaign. Players have large, engaged audiences that can be reached through collab functions in the social media platforms. The MLS will also include a PR campaign with strategic partners like public figures, YouTubers, or social media influencers to promote their campaign and reach a wider audience.
Paid Media
Another way to reach a diverse audience is through Paid Media. Tools with platforms like Meta, Google, Youtube and Programmatic have advanced targeting capabilities, the league can reach a specific audience based on demographics, interests, and behaviors. This can help ensure that the league’s campaign is being seen by new segments, increasing the interest and subscriptions to the new MLS Season Pass in Apple TV.
The launch of Our Soccer, Our Way presents a significant opportunity to drive conversion in this new era for the league starting their new media deal with Apple by targeting digitally: Actual fans, season ticket holders and a young and diverse audience through social media and the YouTube platform. By utilizing the power of video, influencers & players partnerships, Paid and targeted advertising, the league can build interest in the 2023 season and drive conversions with new subscribers.