When COVID-19 suspended the 2019–2020 NBA season, sponsors abandoned ship and other leagues scrambled to install cardboard fan cutouts. Michelob ULTRA saw an opportunity to innovate, transforming its title sponsorship of the NBA into an unprecedented brand integration, content creation machine and veritable cultural phenomenon.

Powered by an unconventional partnership between Michelob ULTRA, Microsoft and the NBA, Courtside enabled real-time interaction between quarantined fans, players and broadcasters that became central to the storyline of the season. The payoff? A 32% sales increase due to 31% lift in reach, across 81.5 million hours of NBA coverage and 13 billion impressions.

“Play games without the fans? Nah, it’s impossible. I ain’t playing.”

— LeBron James, March 6, 2020

COVID-19 sent the sports season — and beer sales — into a tailspin. As quarantine set in, on-premise sales evaporated, fans feared a “lost season” and athletes threatened not to play. While other sports sponsors divested, canceling experiential activations, pulling ads and subduing communications, Michelob ULTRA set out to save its first year as the official beer sponsor of the NBA.

Once favored for its health benefits, light beer sales are declining 3%–4% per year and have been since 2013. Michelob ULTRA particularly struggles with social badge value among young urban consumers, who are quickly adopting trendy hard seltzers. Sales growth is heavily influenced by mental availability (reach, consideration and share of voice), which is driven by brand exposure and cultural relevance.

This made Michelob ULTRA’s mission clear: Matter in culture.

When COVID-19 threw the NBA season and sponsorship into peril, athletes and coaches were worried that, without live fans, the game would feel as empty as the stands themselves. Michelob ULTRA had a chance to break through and bring joy back to the game, and its consumers’ lives along the way.

So while other leagues scrambled to install cardboard fan cutouts, Michelob ULTRA partnered with Microsoft and the NBA... and Michelob ULTRA Courtside was born.

Powered by the debut of Microsoft’s AI-driven Together Mode and a ring of 17-foot LEDs, the experience digitally transported fans into the NBA Bubble, from the comfort and safety of home. The experience boasted millisecond data transfers, a never-before-seen rail cam and 120 spatial audio microphones, which redefined the live watching experience.

And across 124 games and 81.5 million hours of NBA coverage, Michelob ULTRA proved game-changing innovation… could change the game forever.

Michelob ULTRA had a problem with young, health-minded urban drinkers. Put simply, while the beer’s better-for-you product benefits appealed, the brand didn’t. Gaining consideration and relevance was critical, as the brand significantly under-indexed the light beer category with men 21–49 (-49% average) and women 28–34 (-17% average). To reach them, Michelob ULTRA became the official beer sponsor of the NBA, which nearly two-thirds of Americans ages 18–44 are avid or casual fans of.

But in order to effectively reach and resonate with this audience, Michelob ULTRA would need to go beyond linear broadcast viewing, to include digital publishers and influencers, where this demographic gets its NBA coverage. Turning the courtside into an unmistakable immersive billboard did just that. Calls-to-action across PR, paid social, influencer content, and in-store and digital trade complemented broadcast integrations and TVC, encouraging fans to scan their Michelob ULTRA bottles for a chance to win tickets Courtside.

Michelob ULTRA virtually transported fans back where they wanted to be… and where players need them to be: Courtside.

Across 124 games live-broadcasted from the Orlando-based NBA Bubble (7/30/20–10/11/20), fans scanned Michelob ULTRA bottles to win virtual event tickets. Suddenly, empty stands that plagued stadiums became an invaluable media opportunity, with Michelob ULTRA hosting event nights generating press, social buzz and influencer content throughout the season. Nightly, the brand’s stands featured first responders, adoptable dogs or unsuspecting fans, rubbing digital elbows with the likes of Lil Wayne, Shaq and even President Obama.

Real-time player, fan and broadcaster interaction made Michelob ULTRA a pivotal part of the season’s storyline, generating incremental brand exposure 20% over paid media target. Engagement across media channels accelerated too. A 700% increase in engagement with eCommerce digital trade ads boosted share by a full point and in-store trade delivered +15% sales incrementality.

Michelob ULTRA Courtside changed the fate of the brand’s business as it navigated a year rife with disruption due to COVID-19.

The campaign became the cultural phenomenon the brand needed, surpassing all expectations with 13 billion impressions and 81.5 million hours of NBA coverage. That level of exposure and relevance drove a substantial lift in all major mental availability metrics, including consideration (+4.3%), reach (+31%) and share of voice (+6%).

The result? Michelob ULTRA sales grew 32%, due to soaring cultural relevance, on-bottle, scan-to-win ticket promotions and unprecedented brand exposure. In a year when distribution (physical availability) remained flat, the brand was the industry’s biggest share-gainer. Michelob ULTRA gained +69 points of market share, towering over declines of Miller Lite (-13 points) and Coors Light (-32 points).

Today, Microsoft is applying insights from Courtside to workplaces, classrooms and entertainment venues to make them more fun, engaging and memorable.