We all have had that sporting event where we have relied on Twitter for updates. Many times we hope that there will be a popular retweet that will surface on our feed, with a Vine showing some of the current action or most recent goal or touchdown.
Luckily for us, the NFL has signed a two-year deal with Twitter to bring more game highlights to our feeds. The NFL first signed a deal with Twitter in 2013. Additionally, they have other deals with Facebook and YouTube. These three companies have huge digital reach and the NFL seems to understand how important these social platforms are when it come to their fans. 
For Twitter
Twitter has reached a pretty huge milestone in this deal with the NFL. This is the first time that Twitter has signed a multi-year deal with a huge organization. It has not been publicly released, but it seems that Twitter will use game clips and highlights from live games, as well as pre-game footage, which is all about their “Project Lightning.” That’s their plan to emphasize big, popular events happening in real time.
Glen Brown, who is in charge of “Project Lightning,” has not released much about the multi-year deal with Twitter, but he has explained, “Any new cool, discovery path, we want the NFL to be front and center of that. The content is the most engaging stuff we’ve seen.”
Twitter and the NFL will split revenue gained from their advertisements on Twitter. The advertisements will come from both the NFL and Twitter whereas in previous deals the two organizations have worked together to generate ads.
Positive or Negative for Twitter? For the NFL?
Overall, I would have to say that this deal between the NFL and Twitter is a positive. This live game footage is definitely going to drive more traffic towards the NFL and Twitter alike. I believe football enthusiasts will be very happy to know that right from their Twitter feed they will be able to see key plays and highlights, especially when they don’t have the luxury of sitting in front of the TV on those sacred Sundays during the NFL season.
I do believe that if the NFL also takes hold of Snapchat Stories, like the NBA has, that Twitter will be in competition when it comes to pre-game footage. It will be interesting to see how the NFL balances these two popular networks.
This has been my review and opinion, but I would love to hear yours. Tweet me @ceek22 or comment below.
