---
title: Nike Game Growers | 2nd Hashtag Sports Awards
description: The Hashtag Sports Awards recognize excellence in fan and consumer engagement across sports entertainment content, campaigns, and creators.
image: https://www.hashtagsports.com/hubfs/awards/shortlist-2020/nike-game-growers.webp
---

### 🎉 2020 Shortlist

##### Nike Game Growers

**Entrant: **Nike

WINNER 🏆

- Best Gen Z or Kids Activation

###### Share:

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How does this represent “Excellence in Engagement”?

Through this unique program, Nike was able to reimagine how Team, League, Brand, and Community relationships intersect and complement each other, while keeping the Gen Z consumer at the heart of the program. Game Growers delivered one central concept that was brought to life by individual girls in each market, and we unlocked a new approach to working together to solve a problem that is bigger than any of us as individuals.

By empowering and enabling girls use their voice and share their ideas, we heard new and unique ideas on how to start closing the participation gap for girls. We adapted and evolved together through the COVID-19 pandemic, completely shifting from a physical program to one navigated via Zoom and FaceTime. This allowed girls to bring their ideas to fruition, regardless of the complexity in the world.

**Objective:**

Sports participation is falling in the United States, with the largest dropout rate among girls ages 10-14. In this age group, girls are twice as likely than boys to stop playing. There are a variety of contributing factors, resulting in feeling like they do not have a voice in the way they experience sports, and that they don't belong. By bringing corporate, league and non-profit partners together, we sought to empower girls to define where sports could go. Girls from across the United States submitted ideas that would encourage more girls in their community to play sports, and then inspired and supported them as they developed and implemented their ideas.

**Strategy & Execution:**

Nike, the NBA and WNBA and all 36 participating WNBA and NBA teams joined together to promote this opportunity for girls, using the first-ever co-streamed broadcast aimed at driving awareness of the program. In that program Nike, the WNBA, multiple WNBA and NBA Teams, and influencers created a program that was simultaneously broadcast on their social media channels. This started a conversation around the reasons girls are leaving sports and asked girls to apply with ideas for positive change. WNBA and NBA Teams then hosted application gatherings, used social media outreach, television, in-arena messaging and athletes to amplify the opportunity. Girls applied as teams of two by sharing why the issue of girls and inactivity mattered to them, submitting an idea that could grow girls’ sports participation in their community. Each of the 36 participating WNBA and NBA teams then selected one pair of girls with whom they would collaborate - surprising each Game Grower team with a personal selection moment.

**Production**

Nike  
WNBA  
NBA

**Credits**

**[Michelle Campbell](https://www.linkedin.com/in/michelle-campbell-aa94b3a0/)**  
Nike Basketball Brand Manager  
Nike

**[Darah Ross](https://www.linkedin.com/in/darah-ross-1024854/)**  
Director Nike SCI  
Nike

**[Kelsey Moore](https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelsey-moore-2670b56/)**  
MTP Director Nike SCI  
Nike

**Hannah Eggert**  
Training Specialist  
Nike

**[Lauren Frattali](https://www.linkedin.com/in/lauren-frattali-26ba69201/)**  
Sr Director NBA WNBA Relations  
Nike

**Lindsey Carr**  
Sr Contract Specialist  
Nike

**[Andy Pawlowski](https://www.linkedin.com/in/apawlowski/)**  
Nike Basketball Brand Director  
Nike

**[Harrison Laifer](https://www.linkedin.com/in/harrisonlaifer/)**  
Associate Manager, Global Partnerships  
NBA

**[Chris Wiebke](https://www.linkedin.com/in/chriswiebke/)**  
Sr Director, Global Partnerships  
NBA

**[Kelly Higgins](https://www.linkedin.com/in/kelly-higgins-a0000815/)**  
Director, Team Marketing & Business Operations  
NBA

**[Mark Starkey](https://www.linkedin.com/in/markstarkey/?originalSubdomain=ca)**  
CEO  
Victory

**[Jelyssa Madrid](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jelyssamadrid/?originalSubdomain=ca)**  
Creative Services Director  
Victory

#### Join the Engagement + Creative Elite

Open Call for Entries to the 6th Annual Hashtag Sports Awards closes on March 4, 2024. Submit content and campaigns across more than 70 categories.

 

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