The stars will be out in Hollywood next week. Not Tom Cruise, Robert Downey Jr., Selena Gomez or Angelina Jolie. Instead, it will be a crop of NFL rookies, including Manti Te’o, Geno Smith, E.J. Manuel, Tavon Austin and Matt Barkley, making their first official appearances en mass at the NFL Players Association Rookie Premiere.
Hosted by NFL Players Inc. (the licensing and marketing division of NFLPA), the Rookie Premiere will see 40 of the league’s incoming players participate in activities and seminars covering the “business of football.” A three-day event, being held in the Loews Hollywood Hotel, May 15-17, includes one-on-ones with NFL marketing and media partners, sponsors and licensees; attending business and media seminars; and participating in the “One Team One Community” platform, which focuses on the “importance of social responsibility.”
A fourth day, May 18, is anchored by the rookies heading to the Rose Bowl in Pasadena to take their first official photos and sign autographs for NFL-partner trading card companies Topps and Panini America (and its Score division).
“This is where these players are shown that, while playing in the NFL is the fulfillment of a dream, it is also about business, building their brands and learning about making career choices that could affect their lives,” said Keith Gordon, president of NFL Players Inc.
Marketing partners that will activate during the event include Topps, Panini America, Pepsi NEXT, Nike, EA Sports, Fandeavor, FedEx, SB Nation, TheraPearl and Elevee. Other NFL partners, including McDonald’s, will use the event to gauge the value of participating in future NFLPA Rookie Premieres.
“The NFL is a $10 billion business, and Commissioner [Roger] Goodell said he wants the league to become a $25 billion business by 2025,” said Gordon. “Players need to understand how to work with sponsors and the media, and understand how the business of football can work for them.”
Barry Janoff is the Director of Sports Media Marketing Initiatives for PromaxBDA. He also is the Executive Editor for NYSportsJournalism.com, which covers national sports marketing, business and media news; and a contributing writer for Yahoo! and MediaPost.
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