The NBA Scores Big with New Ad Partners

#TheStarters Twitter Show is live in 5 minutes at 11am ET!https://t.co/iAGEfqZJ8d

— The Starters (@TheStarters) November 15, 2016

The NBA bet big on Twitter over the summer, inking a deal to stream popular shows “The Starters” and “The WarmUp.” That bet has now paid off, as the NBA and Twitter have announced their first live-streaming advertisers in American Express and JBL Harman. With their partnership and advertisers, Twitter and the NBA are intelligently capitalizing on plunging live viewership figures and the rise of cord-cutters. The move seeks to capture an increasingly web-based audience that has drifted to social media sites like Twitter for sports interaction.

The Baggies: Old-Fashioned on the Pitch, Innovators Off of It

West Brom became the first Premier League club to register an account on Dongqiudi, a popular football-centric social platform based in China. The app has 2,000,000 daily active users and has experienced a 60 percent quarterly increase in its audience size. West Brom became the first Chinese majority owned Premiership club when it was acquired by businessman Guochuan Lai in September, and the club therefore felt it fitting to also become the league’s first club to register on Dongqiudi.

“We are very pleased to have taken another step forward in our efforts to better communicate with our growing fan base in China,” said West Brom’s Head of Partnership George Harborne in a statement. The partnership will extend the Baggie’s global fanbase, as well as opening up the door for more clubs to register on Dongqiudi and interact with new supporters on a growing platform.

Not Bad, Badminton England

Badminton Genius? Reckon you could do this? OK then, prove it at a club or court near you: https://t.co/HpzHDZAFE3 pic.twitter.com/ELLJzHTmnE

— Badminton England (@BadmintonEnglnd) November 16, 2016

Ever had the burning urge to play Badminton but unsure of where to go? Badminton England is hoping to alleviate that problem, and the sport governing body has released a fun Twitter video to direct interested players in the right direction. The clip shows a professional player managing to hit the birdie into tiny cups and directs viewers to a directory of local clubs and courts, where they too can learn how to aim for tiny cups. Well, no promises on mastering that feat, but the initiative and Twitter video is a great way to impress viewers in order to get them active and playing in their own local communities.

Grab Some Buds (and Drones)

Tryouts are open. Enter the @budlight DRL 2017 Tryouts on the DRL Drone Racing Simulator: https://t.co/o3Pg4EqNB3

— Drone Racing League (@DroneRaceLeague) November 10, 2016

The Drone Racing League (DLR) announced earlier this week a partnership with Bud Light, the league’s first official corporate sponsorship. The low-calorie beer line will be the title sponsor of of the 2017 Bud Light DLR Tryouts in order to uncover the next drone racing star. The Tryouts are accessible via a newly unveiled drone racing simulator, and fans can attempt to conquer the courses on which their favorite pros compete.

Level 4: Ohio Crash Site #FPV fly through. pic.twitter.com/afGJRGaRdH

— Drone Racing League (@DroneRaceLeague) November 8, 2016

“Partnering with Bud Light to launch the DRL racing simulator is incredibly special for the league, as we continue blending the virtual and real worlds to build the sport of the future,” said DRL CEO/Founder Nicholas Horbaczewski. The Tryouts are open to anyone over the age of 21, and the winner will earn a $75,000 professional contract and Bud Light sponsorship to compete in the 2017 DRL season. The DLR has grown massively since its 2015 founding, garnering a $1 million investment from media giant Sky and an ESPN broadcast agreement in September. The league’s first corporate sponsorship with Bud Light represents its increasingly mainstream status and will further expand its popularity and fan engagement.

When in Rome, Do as the Twitter Fans Do

#ASRoma is asking fans which language the club's next official website should be launched in? Cast your vote and the club will listen!

— AS Roma English (@ASRomaEN) November 16, 2016

AS Roma is preparing for the launch of a new official website, and the club is running a Twitter poll to discover the desired language for the site’s launch. Not only does the interactive platform engage fans and let them know that their voices are heard, but the variety of languages evidences how football support has become a fully global affair, spanning across countries and cultures. With four days left in the poll, the club has received tens of thousands of responses, an exemplary use of social media to drive fan interaction.