The start of the 2026 NFL season doesn’t belong to football alone anymore. For several years, the league has been building an audience among viewers who never used to give it a second look. Fashion labels, entertainment brands and influencers have all built moments around the buildup to this season, proof that a cultural event this size doubles as a marketing platform.
Some of that shift traces back to the “WAG effect,” the growing reach of NFL players’ wives and girlfriends on social media, who bring their own massive followings into the football conversation through gameday outfits and vlogs.
Here’s what a handful of brands got right, and what it means for businesses without an NFL-sized budget.
Fashion Becomes the Campaign
Abercrombie is in its second year as the NFL’s official fashion partner, and this season’s push leans on players like Drake Maye and Justin Jefferson to sell the collection instead of running a traditional ad campaign.
The brand is also finding creative ways to tap into players’ personal lives, posting a couples quiz video on its own TikTok that pairs Drake with his wife, Ann Michael Maye, an influencer in her own right, under the #nflbyabercrombie tag. The line now ships through nflshop.com and Fanatics, and Abercrombie is building its presence into tunnel walks and international games, not just product drops.
Kristin Juszczyk made a similar bet on player-driven fashion and turned it into an entire brand. She started by hand-sewing jackets for herself at cold games, went viral after making custom pieces for Taylor Swift and Simone Biles, then partnered with Skims co-founder Emma Grede to launch Off Season with backing from the NFL and Fanatics. The brand has since expanded into MLB, NBA and Team USA gear, all from a moment that started as one fan’s side project.
Character Crossovers Get Literal
Disney, Champion and the NFL debuted a 32-team collection this year pairing every franchise with Disney, Marvel, Star Wars and Pixar characters, unveiled at Fanatics Fest in New York. The collaboration is part of Disney and ESPN’s yearlong build toward ESPN’s first Super Bowl broadcast, which makes the kickoff-weekend rollout feel like a first chapter rather than a one-off.
The League Brings Its Own Influencers
The NFL didn’t wait for creators to cover Kickoff Weekend on their own. It flew more than 100 of them to Melbourne for the league’s first game in Australia. Popular creator Darcy McQueeny documented her trip starting from the tarmac, tagging the Rams in a post that read part fan, part ambassador. Treating creators as a broadcast channel instead of an afterthought is quickly becoming standard practice for the league, and allows them to reach a whole new demographic.
What This Means for Businesses Closer to Home
None of this requires an NFL-sized budget to translate locally. A well-timed promotion or a single social post tied to gameday can do the same work as a national campaign, if a local business plans ahead. Chicago’s Wiener’s Circle proved that last season, promising free hot dogs if Bears quarterback Caleb Williams threw four touchdown passes. He did, the restaurant ordered an extra 2,000 hot dogs, and the line wrapped around the block in Lincoln Park.
Here’s how businesses can capitalize in real-time this season:
- Score-Triggered Specials: A restaurant doesn’t need a marquee player to run this play, just a scoreboard. Offer a percentage off the bill for every touchdown scored, or a free dessert if the home team posts a shutout. The promise of a deal tied to real-time performance gives diners a reason to watch the game somewhere other than their couch.
- Score-Based Promo Codes: Retailers can tie a discount code to a live score, unlocking a bigger percentage off for every point the home team scores. A limited drop timed to gameday, then pulled at the final whistle, creates the same urgency without needing a celebrity endorsement.
- Win-Triggered Perks: Gyms, salons and other service businesses can offer a perk tied to the local team’s performance, like a free class or add-on booked the week after a home win. It’s a low-cost way to give customers a reason to return that feels connected to the season instead of a generic discount.
Kickoff Weekend will happen again next year, and so will the next cultural moment worth building around. The brands and businesses that win aren’t necessarily the biggest. They’re the ones paying attention early enough to have something ready.