--- title: "The Players’ Tribune x KAY Jewelers: NFL Campaign | 7th Hashtag Sports Awards" description: Global awards recognizing excellence in fan engagement and celebrating creativity across sports marketing, media & entertainment image: https://www.hashtagsports.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Assets-AF-2025/YZwpVABR-1D82X0wRDh-file.png --- The Players’ Tribune x KAY Jewelers: NFL Campaign | 7th Hashtag Sports Awards [The 7th Annual Awards](https://www.hashtagsports.com/awards/shortlist-2025?hsLang=en) # The Players’ Tribune x KAY Jewelers: NFL Campaign [The Players’ Tribune](https://www.theplayerstribune.com/), [Minute Media](https://www.minutemedia.com/) Share [** ](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hashtagsports.com%2Fawards%2Fshortlist-2025%2Fthe-players-tribune-x-kay-jewelers-nfl-campaign) [** ](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hashtagsports.com%2Fawards%2Fshortlist-2025%2Fthe-players-tribune-x-kay-jewelers-nfl-campaign&text=The+Players%E2%80%99+Tribune+x+KAY+Jewelers%3A+NFL+Campaign+%7C+7th+Hashtag+Sports+Awards) [** ](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hashtagsports.com%2Fawards%2Fshortlist-2025%2Fthe-players-tribune-x-kay-jewelers-nfl-campaign) ABOUT THIS ENTRY Throughout 2024, KAY Jewelers leveraged The Players’ Tribune’s editorial prowess and athlete relationships to connect with NFL fans around three major tentpole moments - the Super Bowl, the NFL Draft and the Hall of Fame ceremony. With The Players’ Tribune’s powerful storytelling ability and trust with the athlete community, the partnership produced three hugely successful content pieces that authentically combined KAY Jewelers’ messaging and products with athlete stories during these key moments. ![Image](https://www.hashtagsports.com/hs-fs/hubfs/Assets-AF-2025/YZwpVABR-1D82X0wRDh-file.png?width=1920&height=1080&name=YZwpVABR-1D82X0wRDh-file.png) How does this represent "Excellence in Engagement"? Brands are often looking to leverage celebrities or athletes to create bigger splashes among their target audiences - especially in the sports industry, and especially during major tentpole events. However, there's been a recent shift in audience sentiment where having a well-known ambassador is simply not enough. Audiences are looking for authenticity in everything they interact with, & with this shift, many companies are realizing that without an authentic connection to their product or message, big-name sponsors or ambassadors are seen more as expensive ploys than well intentioned campaigns, leading to less consumer buy-in & less successful campaigns. While TPT has always been rooted in authentic storytelling, this shift in audience expectation has further proven the need for genuine connection in branded content. This campaign was able to exceed company goals & engage with audiences because it led with authentic, emotional storytelling vs. clichéd sponsorship taglines. By focusing on the personal athlete stories during key moments in their careers, & how those stories organically connected to KAY’s brand messaging, TPT was able to create content that was not only entertaining & engaging, but that elicited emotional responses that will be sure to aid in continuing to grow KAY’s brand for years to come. Objective In 2024, KAY Jewelers (KAY) was looking to generate greater affinity, purchasing intent and recommendation intent around their products. They knew that in order to do this effectively they needed a way to organically and authentically connect their messaging with the interests of their target audience. As the leader in athlete-led storytelling, The Players’ Tribune (TPT) was the perfect partner to accomplish this feat. The resulting partnership leveraged TPT’s powerful storytelling ability and trust with the athlete community, to produce an NFL campaign that authentically positioned KAY products at the center of the NFL’s biggest tentpoles - the Super Bowl, NFL Draft and Hall of Fame Ceremony. Each content piece - “Voicemails” and “Love & Football” featuring Fred Warner, “Top Picks” featuring Terrion Arnold and “The Road to the Ring” featuring Devin Hester - was tailored to fit each specific tentpole and organically wove KAY’s key message points into the athlete’s story by finding synergies that already existed between the two. Strategy & Execution The Players’ Tribune & KAY Jewelers knew that in order to effectively engage with NFL fans today, they needed to focus on delivering the right message, at the right time, on the right platform. Each piece was tailored to fit each specific tentpole as well as each athlete’s unique story & how it connected organically with KAY’s brand messaging of “celebrating love & life’s meaningful moments”. “Voicemails” & “Love & Football” focused on Warner’s journey to the Super Bowl & his appreciation for his wife her unwavering support; “Top Picks” jumped on the “Get Ready With Me” social trend to introduce audiences to Draftee, Terrion Arnold, as he dawned some KAY pieces in anticipation of becoming a pro; & “The Road to the Ring” amplified KAY’s already-existing sponsorship with the Pro Football Hall of Fame through a celebration of Devin Hester’s career culminating in him receiving a coveted Hall of Fame ring. Each segment of the campaign was distributed across TPT’s social channels & was timed around the tentpole of focus. By meeting fans where they already live - Instagram, TikTok, Twitter(X.com), etc. - TPT ensured that the content would not only be seen by their target audience, but shared as well - optimizing visibility, virality & engagement. ** Nominations ** - Best Branded Content **Organizations** - Minute Media - The Players’ Tribune - KAY Jewelers - Spark Foundry **Links** - [  Website ](https://www.theplayerstribune.com) - [  Voicemails](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghE0dZEMXmY&list=PL5DHH0GZa26eU9PJDtJ90lSZC-R6WH0dz&index=1) - [  Love & Football](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yosPj7WNCFg&list=PL5DHH0GZa26eU9PJDtJ90lSZC-R6WH0dz&index=2) - [  Top Picks](https://www.facebook.com/theplayerstribune/videos/top-picks-terrion-arnold/8397930076889702/) - [  The Road to the Ring](https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1159663285517803&id=100044224279711) **Featured** - Fred Warner - Terrion Arnold - Devin Hester **Credits** **[ Taylor Baucom](https://www.linkedin.com/in/taylor-baucom-65881569/) ** Head of Visual Content The Players' Tribune / Minute Media **[ Matthew Celentano](https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-celentano/) ** Producer The Players' Tribune / Minute Media **[ Kate Comelli](https://www.linkedin.com/in/kate-comelli-08088358/) ** Senior Director, Production Operations Minute Media **[ Betsy Connors](https://www.linkedin.com/in/betsyconnors/) ** Senior Marketing Director, Integrated Marketing Minute Media **[ Kara Criscione](https://www.linkedin.com/in/kara-criscione/) ** Associate Director, Production Operations Minute Media **[ Max Garofalo](https://www.linkedin.com/in/max-garofalo/) ** SVP, Sales Minute Media **[ Nate Gordon](https://www.linkedin.com/in/nate-gordon-a6881867/) ** SVP, Head of Content TPT The Players' Tribune **[ Krzysztof Kucza](https://www.linkedin.com/in/krzysztof-kucza-16425594/) ** Manager, Global Brand Revenue & Operations Minute Media **[ Allison Lach](https://www.linkedin.com/in/allison-lach-658427b/) ** Senior Director, Integrated Marketing (Pre-Sale) Minute Media **[ Jamie Lansdowne](https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamielansdowne/) ** Senior Video Editor Minute Media **[ Ian Levy](https://www.linkedin.com/in/ian-levy-66b96b151/) ** Creative Director FanSided / Minute Media **[ Ramon Lopez](https://www.linkedin.com/in/ramonralopez/) ** Senior Multimedia Designer The Players' Tribune **[ Matt Mastrantuono](https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattmastrantuono/) ** Executive Producer The Players' Tribune **[ Jason McClain](https://www.theplayerstribune.com/) ** Senior Video Producer The Players' Tribune **[ Shaye McGoey](https://www.linkedin.com/in/shaye-m/) ** Senior Manager, Global Brand Revenue & Operations Minute Media **[ Katherine O'Malley Randall](https://www.linkedin.com/in/katherineannomalley/) ** SVP, Creative Strategy and Production Operations Minute Media **[ Chad Payne](https://www.linkedin.com/in/chad-payne-esq-02b5a17/) ** SVP, Legal & Business Affairs Minute Media **[ Shannon Peirce](https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannon-peirce-19b389a1/) ** Legal Counsel Minute Media **[ Alex Rose](https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexrose21/) ** Consultant The Players' Tribune / Minute Media **[ Sam Sterling](https://www.linkedin.com/in/samanthasterling/) ** VP, Marketing Strategy and Operations Minute Media **[ Colby Sycoff](https://www.linkedin.com/in/colby-sycoff-803121bb/) ** Athlete Relations and Partnerships Director The Players' Tribune / Minute Media **[ Michael Tridente](https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeltridente/) ** Director, Integrated Marketing Minute Media **[ RJ Walker](https://www.linkedin.com/in/roderickwalker/) ** Athlete Relations & Partnerships Coordinator The Players' Tribune **[ Brandy Gadd](https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandy-gadd/) ** Marketing Director Signet Jewelers / KAY Jewelers **[ Natalie Nesius](https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalienesius/) ** Activations & Partnerships Manager, KAY Jewelers Signet Jewelers / KAY Jewelers **[ Kathleen Suggett](https://www.linkedin.com/in/katy-suggett-4b00b061/) ** Strategic Marketing Analyst, KAY Jewelers Signet Jewelers / KAY Jewelers **[ Ann Marie Kennedy](https://www.linkedin.com/in/ann-marie-kennedy/) ** Content Supervisor Spark Foundry **[ Mia Voehringer Voehringer](https://www.linkedin.com/in/mia-voehringer/) ** Associate Director, Content Spark Foundry #### INSPIRED TO ENTER WORK? 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