Jan 30, 2019

The partnership means original content and exclusive access for next-gen football fans.

This week, the number-one entertainment brand for kids and America's most popular sports league are teaming up to bring action and excitement to the gridiron.

In partnership with the National Football League,  Nickelodeon talent and creatives will be in Atlanta for the Super Bowl LIII festivities, creating original on-air programming — like a special Double Dare at Super Bowl episode — and covering the events leading up to the big game.

“We are engaged in a collaborative partnership with the NFL,” says Laura Lundgren, SVP of marketing for the Nick Experience team. "It's a unique partnership that provides us access. The league gives us a lot of flexibility in terms of creative storytelling and the freedom to have fun."

The experiential activities mark Nick’s eighth year of partnering with the NFL, which first began with a content collaboration on NFL RUSH ZONE in 2010. For the 2019 Super Bowl, the brand anticipates more content and more visibility, which mean more opportunities to entertain, engage, and get in front of a new generation of sports fans.

A week of exclusive access and appearances.

The brand’s week of on-the-ground experiences begins Monday with Super Bowl Opening Night, an event for the media and fans. Double Dare host Marc Summers and stars Scarlett Spencer and Dallas Dupree Young from Nick’s new comedy Cousins for Life will be on-site interacting with players and press.

The group will take part in fun NFL-inspired challenges, trivia games, and contests that are “not messy or dangerous” so the players remain in tiptop condition for the showdown Sunday.

All of the action will take place at Nick’s interactive Double Dare stage destination, which cements the brand’s presence at the huge event near major broadcasters like NFL Network and CBS that have a presence at this year’s event.

Opening Night is the only public appearance the Super Bowl players and coaches have in Atlanta before the big game, so it allows for special appearances by NFL legends, team mascots, as well as fan photo opportunities.

The rest of the week’s activities include a tour of the Super Bowl host arena Mercedes-Benz Stadium, which opened in 2017, that will offer viewers a backstage look at the new state-of-the-art facility.  Scarlett Spencer and Dallas Dupree Young from Nick’s new comedy of Cousins for Life will also head to Super Bowl Experience, a massive exhibit for football fans that features immersive exhibits, interactive games, and up-close looks at NFL memorabilia, to interact with fans and interview players.

The Nick team will capture all those interviews and interactions to air across all the Nick networks, as well as its websites and social media channels.

Then, close out the week with the filming of the Double Dare special that will feature  host Liza Koshy, Marc Summers, Nick stars, and real kids in competition with NFL athletes like New Orleans Saints quarterback, Houston Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins, New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., and Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson. The episode is set to air at noon ET on Super Bowl Sunday. According to Lundgren, Nick is the only network other than CBS  that's allowed to broadcast Super Bowl-related content on Super Bowl Sunday through its partnership with the NFL.

Leading the way in the new era in sports media and entertainment.

Nick’s deep library of IP offers a playground of opportunity to connect with sports families and their children on one of the biggest days in sports and entertainment.

Previously, the brand’s partnership with the NFL led to the development of NFL Rush Zone, the first-ever original half-hour animated series created by a major U.S. sports league and a cable network. While some of last year’s activations included Superstar Slime Showdown at Super Bowl competition special hosted by Nick Cannon, as well as a halftime performance by JoJo Siwa.

As in past years, Nick will devote much of its Super Bowl-week programming to sports encourage fan participation and get kids excited for Sunday’s game.

"The Super Bowl is uniquely a moment that the entire nation focuses on," says Lundgren. "So, anything we do gets carried really, really far."