Brief:
- The L.A. Clippers partnered with sweepstakes app Lucky Day to provide gameday experiences like mobile scratch-off games, raffles and lotteries, according to an announcement.
- The partnership includes gameday signage, digital and social media activations, hospitality elements and on-court fan promotions customized to engage fans.
- Lucky Day, which is the top lifestyle app in Apple's App Store and is in the top five on Google Play, gives users a chance to win money and prizes by playing ad-sponsored scratchers, raffle and lottery games.
Insight:
The L.A. Clippers' partnership with Lucky Day is another way to engage fans while adding to the entertainment value of attending games. Game attendance for the Clippers has been stable at an average of about 17,100 attendees a game for the past several years. The team ranks No. 19 this year in average game attendance, while the Los Angeles Lakers are ranked No. 10, according to the NBA.
The Clippers, which former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer bought in 2014, have been at the forefront of trying out new technologies to enhance game viewing. The team last month started testing a platform that provides multiple streams of augmented reality (AR) viewing on the Fox Sports app, although a dedicated app is in the works. The CourtVision product lets fans see digital overlays of data while watching games, among other features, according to ESPN.
In addition, unnamed sources told Bloomberg that the Clippers this year signed a three-year, $20 million sponsorship deal with "female empowerment" dating app Bumble after the NBA allowed ads on player uniforms. As part of the partnership, the team is seeking to reach out to young women with community initiatives to foster skills, confidence and knowledge.
Other NBA teams have developed partnerships with tech companies that enhance fans' mobile experiences. The Phoenix Suns last month signed a sponsorship deal with PayPal, integrating PayPal into the Suns' mobile app and letting fans go cashless with one-touch payments for parking, merchandise and concessions. The agreement also makes PayPal the official payment partner of the Suns, the Phoenix Mercury women's team and Real Club Deportivo Mallorca, a Spanish soccer team owned by Suns managing partner Robert Sarver.
