NFL Draft Alchemy
Things are kicking into high gear here in Draft Town USA, and it is pretty amazing to see the full power of the NFL brand on display in the city that was formerly known as Chicago. The NFL spinning wheel is at full tilt as draft dross becomes brand gold.
Before I go any further I must, in the interests of full disclosure, state that I belong to the class of casual football fans. During the season I might catch a game or two if I have a quiet Sunday afternoon, and I will set out a nice spread for the family as we join much of the USA to watch the Superbowl. However, I am not a true fan with a fantasy team, season tickets or a deep understanding of the effect a fourth round draft choice might have on my team’s nickel defense.
That said, it is truly astounding to see what has landed in the middle of Chicago. The NFL has built Draft Town, a three ring circus devoted entirely to football on prime downtown Chicago real estate. Covering an area greater than 15 football fields, Draft Town includes several eight story tall tent structures, a vast array of fan activities, a sculpture garden of three foot tall team helmets, team interaction tents, a Draft Town Tavern (Bud on draught), an onsite league shopping venue and even a FedEx depot for shipping purchases home. The images shown here don’t do justice to the scale of Draft Town, a walking tour is the only way to really understand how monumental all of this is.
What is particularly astounding to me is the NFL’s ability (and perhaps hubris) to develop and package seemingly mundane events into first tier media events and extend the reach of the brand across the calendar. I am certainly not the first person to note the successful efforts of the NFL to build a year-round presence by stringing together summer camps, the actual season, the Probowl, the Superbowl, the league combine and the draft. Add in all the social and online interactions available and football is becoming a core entertainment product, available 365 days a year, and far surpassing the reach of any other sports league. The town that has risen at Michigan and Congress in Chicago is a stunning physical manifestation of these efforts.
Draft Town may display NFL alchemy at its best. The heart of draft week is what amounts to a series of hiring announcements. A group of young, talented athletes have declared their desire to play professional football, and the league has in turn agreed to hold a hiring fair to give employers the chance to drop, in some cases, millions of dollars to hire them. Out of these transactions the NFL has created a major media event, built a town in the middle of Chicago, and plastered every light pole and bus in the city with the NFL logo in an effort to drive brand awareness to new levels. Even taking the show on the road by moving the draft out of NYC for the first time since 1964 contributes to the excitement generated.
Quoted in a New York Times article that reported on his efforts to woo the NFL and Commissioner Roger Goodell, Mayor Rahm Emanuel said “The NFL absolutely is a sport, and the NFL draft is a sporting event that has a unique space in the American psyche. Chicago’s a part of that now. That’s the business plan”. I’m not so sure about that special place in our collective psyche, but there certainly is a business plan, part of which includes clearing the area around Draft Town of as much non-sanctioned NFL advertising as possible.
Consuming this content is a fan base eager for any and all possible football excitement. The success of the NFL to deliver this content is surpassed only by its success in creating the fan demand for the content. At some point I wonder if the NFL spinning wheel might hurtle out of control and leave piles of dross on our living room floors.
