Twitter signs up EE and bet365 for Amplify as it continues to grow its ‘live sports pedigree’
Ahead of this weekend’s FA Cup Final and international football matches, Twitter has signed up both bet365 and EE for its Amplify ad service as the social media brand continues to bolster its live sports highlights.
Working with BT Sport, the EE deal will mean Twitter can show instant highlights from Saturday’s (21 May) FA Cup Final between Crystal Palace and Manchester United.
Bet365, meanwhile, sponsors ITV’s live international football coverage and its Amplify deal will give Twitter live access to highlights from this weekend’s broadcast of the England vs Turkey friendly.
The popularity of Amplify, which launched in 2013 and gives brands the opportunity to publish real-time in-tweet video clips that are accompanied by pre-roll or post-roll advertisements, is helping Twitter “come into its own” around live sport occasions, according to Twitter’s head of Amplify for EMEA Theo Luke.
He told Marketing Week: “These Amplify deals mean that not only are you able to celebrate with fellow Twitter fans all over the world as soon as a goal goes in, but within seconds UK users will see a brilliantly packaged highlight. It shows Twitter’s sports pedigree.
“Twitter really comes into its own during live events and our Amplify deals are great for
fans, broadcasters and advertisers.”
Twitter’s growing focus on live sports
Following this weekend’s England vs Turkey highlights, ITV has also committed to working with Twitter during the upcoming Euro 2016 tournament.
ITV’s multiplatform sales controller Stephen Poole explained: “So many of our amazing TV moments have emotional connections with consumers and working with Twitter Amplify is a great way to make the most of this. We’ve run successful Amplify campaigns in the past around events such as the Rugby World Cup and Six Nations, and we’re looking forward to announcing a partnership for the Euros shortly.”
Over recent years, Twitter has made bigger moves into the live sports space. When Leicester City were recently crowned English Premier League Champions, Twitter usage increased in the UK by a whopping 86% signifying the commercial opportunities live sports now provide for the social media giant. There is also speculation that Twitter is looking at ways to stream live Premier League football matches.
In the US, Twitter has made some concrete moves. It recently announced a partnership with the National Football League (NFL) to provide free live digital streaming of 10 Thursday Night Football games, which would otherwise have been broadcast by NBC and CBS.