Budweiser have announced that they are going to kick off their sponsorship of the FA Cup by broadcasting the opening game on their Facebook page!

In what will be a first-of-its-kind agreement the beer company will helping to air a game that would otherwise not make it onto mainstream TV.  The game is non-league sides Ascot United and Wembley FC and itr takes place this coming Friday night (19th August).

It is a great move and shows that the game is starting to adapt to the platforms that many of us use on a daily basis.   It is not unique globally and the idea may come from experiments that have already taken place on the other side of the pond.

UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship), whose meteoric rise as a global sport has been fuelled by the use of social media, started to show Prelim fights a number of months ago.  This has helped bring the sport to even more people than it could have done if it had concentrated on traditional media.

The match will be shown on the Budweiser UK page and, with it being a beer company, you will have to ‘Like’ the page and be over 18 to watch it.  This will certainly give the Facebook page a bosst and offers some unique, interesting content.  If they start to use it in later rounds of the cup for games that don’t make it onto TV then we could see some great take-up by fans.

It doesnt say however if the content is going to be geo-targeted.  If it isn’t then fans from all over the world will be able to enjoy the FA Cup, an opportunity they have not had before.  More likely though is that you will have to be in the UK to watch it….. we shall wait and see on Friday! 

Ian Newell, Budweiser Marketing Director, said: “As a long-standing supporter of football globally, Budweiser is committed to bringing [sic] the world`s most prestigious knockout competition closer to the fans.

“What better way to demonstrate this than by broadcasting the very first kick to a global audience via Facebook.

“This is the first time a FA Cup tournament fixture has been broadcast live on the social network, which is great news for football fans and clubs alike.”

(Quote taken from www.fcbusiness.co.uk)

Overall it’s a great idea and am looking forward to seeing how it is received by fans.