When it comes to keeping fans from having to watch the usual heavy load of sports ads, Unrivaled has been undaunted.
The start-up three-on-three women’s basketball league, with clubs such as the Phantoms and the Lunar Owls, launched in part to provide an alternative for players who often travel abroad to play during the WNBA off season, but it is also doing something different for its sponsors. During each game, two of the four seven-minute quarters are presented without commercial interruption.
“It gives back to the fan, as opposed to interrupting the narrative,” says Craig Barry, chief content officer for Warner Bros. Discovery’s TNT Sports, which is telecasting the league’s first season through mid-March. Viewers who watch the games are told that online retailer Wayfair is the sponsor of the commercial-free first quarter, while AT&T helps make the uninterrupted fourth quarter telecast possible.
While only in its first season, Unrivaled has accomplished something that bigger, more established leagues have considered for years. The NFL and Major League Baseball are among the sports entities that have fretted about “speeding up” their games, so that fans aren’t frustrated by a glut of commercials that take them away from the action.
Interrupting the viewing experience upsets fans, says Barry, and “you run the risk of them going somewhere else, or not being able to re-engage.”
MLB introduced pitch clocks in 2023 to keep innings moving along with greater speed. The NFL in 2018 pressured the TV networks carrying its games to drop “billboards,” those short call-outs that tell viewers the telecast is “brought to you by” a specific sponsor. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver indicated in late January during a conversation on “The Dan Patrick Show” that he was “a fan” of shortening quarters to ten minutes from 12 to match up with play at the college level and at the Olympics.
Removing ads from innings, periods and quarters is no easy feat. Without broader ad deals in place, the networks would have to ensure they’re bringing in the full value of their ad inventory even though it’s not being used. That’s tough to do for a quarter lasting 12 to 15 minutes.
TV networks have tested commercial-free concepts for golf and NASCAR. Some media outlets like to employ “double box” graphics displays that show ads in one area on screen and game play or on-the-field footage in another. Last year, NBC Sports even went so far as to allow Coca-Cola Co., Delta, Eli Lilly & Co., Toyota Motor Corp., Visa, and Comcast’s Xfinity to sponsor a live hour of coverage of the Olympics Games Opening Ceremony that had no traditional ad interruptions (each advertiser’s logo appeared in the upper right-hand corner of the screen during the program for approximately ten minutes).
Unrivaled organizers chose the first and last quarters to remove traditional commercial interruptions because research shows those periods are when fans are most engaged. In Unrivaled play, the fourth quarter sees the teams fight to attain the “winning score” or 11 points more than the leading team’s tally through three quarters.
The concept has sponsors “supporting the flow without interrupting it as an advertiser” says. Kara O’Brien, Wayfair’s head of brand marketing, in a statement sent via email. “To keep fans engaged, we’re proud to support the commercial-free 1st quarter, which allows the action to unfold uninterrupted. This approach helps maintain the game’s natural rhythm, keeping fans at home fully immersed in the fast-paced, high-energy moments that lead to those unforgettable, game-winning shots.”
The Unrivaled set-up is possible, says Jon Diament, a Warner Bros. Discovery executive vice president who oversees ad sales for TNT Sports, because of a different sort of relationship between the league and its biggest sponsors. Advertisers such as Sephora, Ally, Sprite and others aren’t necessarily buying up traditional TV inventory, he says. Instead, they are purchasing broader alignments that can include in-game signage and being woven into elements around the contest, such as a “glam room” for players backed by the aforementioned beauty retailer. Media sponsors are paying what he said was a “seven-figure” price.
Such packages, says Diament, are more akin to top sponsorships for the NCAA’s March Madness basketball tournament than a traditional sports advertising buy. Advertisers “bought the league sponsorship for many, many more touchpoints — 24/7 and 365 days a year,” he says. “There is social involvement. There is studio involvement. There are obviously commercials that are running in the game. There is branded content with the players. They are really integrated into the success of the league way beyond just running commercials.”
Of course, advertisers who step into new frontiers often want to dominate them. What happens if a sponsor of one of the commercial-free quarters wants to stand out beyond a mere acknowledgement of their help?
“In any partnership, you have to be open to trying to figure out what the best value proposition is,” says Barry. Finding a balance between what advertisers need and what viewers want “is something that’s special,” he adds. “And then both sides have to realize that and then makes sure nobody gets greedy.”
