League One Volleyball (LOVB) and Atlantic New York have teamed up to create campaigns for six of the league’s professional teams across various U.S. cities for its second season.
The campaign features a series of executions spanning social media, in-arena experiences and out-of-home advertising rooted in each city’s culture, energy and history to highlight hometown pride and generate excitement among fans.
LOVB Atlanta’s “Bring Your A” emphasizes the culture of Georgia’s capital; LOVB Austin’s “The Crown Stays Home” highlights the champions as they defend their title with bold Texas pride; LOVB Houston’s “Grit Up” celebrates the city’s ambition and toughness; LOVB Madison’s “We Mad” channels Wisconsin’s passion into a new team identity; LOVB Nebraska’s “State of Legends” honors what many consider the holy ground of American volleyball, where the sport is a way of life; and LOVB Salt Lake’s “High Attitude” merges the elevated mountain landscape with the team’s drive and determination.
(Photo credit: Atlantic New York, used with permission)
To develop the campaigns, the independent creative agency conducted interviews with players, fans and stakeholders to identify cultural insights that resonate with each city.
While the collaboration includes two cities from Texas, João Coutinho, cofounder and chief creative officer of Atlantic New York, said the agency conducted extensive research to make sure each city’s campaign felt accurate and distinct.
“From a visual and iconography standpoint, Austin and Houston are very different,” Coutinho told Campaign. “But when you have two teams from the same state like Texas, you need to find something that really speaks to each city.”
The partnership adds to Atlantic New York’s recent foray into sports after recently working on campaigns for Yahoo Sports and the NBA, Prime Video and the NFL, and Heineken with the UEFA Champions League. However, this is the first time the agency has stepped into women’s sports.
“We see value for the agency not just because it’s growing and it’s a business, but because it represents an important change in behavior for families watching more women’s sports,” said Marco Pupo, cofounder and chief creative officer of Atlantic New York. “The conversation about women getting paid equally can only happen if there’s more people watching. It’s going in a good direction, and we love to help as much as possible to make that happen.”
LOVB was founded in 2020, and its first professional season launched last year with teams that include American silver medalists and players from the last Summer Olympics. The current season kicked off in January with a matchup between defending champions LOVB Austin and LOVB Nebraska, drawing crowds and viewers across USA Network and ESPN as the league builds on its debut season.
(Photo credit: Atlantic New York, used with permission)
The league is also adding three teams next season in 2027: LOVB Los Angeles, LOVB Minnesota and LOVB San Francisco.
LOVB has increased its linear TV inventory by 80% from 10 matches to 18, Sports Business Journal reported. Meanwhile, the February 1 game on ESPN2 between LOVB Madison and LOVB Houston brought in the league’s third-largest audience with more than 100,000 viewers.
Patrick Cox, SVP of brand for LOVB, said the league’s first-season strategy focused on credibility and introducing the league to the public. The second season, he said, is about better understanding and serving the fandom, which is why the league wanted to partner with an agency such as Atlantic New York that knows how to showcase what makes each team special.
Cox said his goal for this season and campaign is to help establish a broader volleyball culture that goes beyond the sport’s existing fan base.
“We actually want to create something that expresses this extraordinary culture,” Cox said. “We have other sports that are very present in our day to day, but volleyball isn’t [one] yet. This campaign is a culture play as well as a sports play.”