It first happened on the PGA tour in early February. TaylorMade, one of golf's biggest equipment vendors, stitched the sponsored Twitter hashtag, #driverlove, on the side of hats worn by golfers endorsed by the company. The tag was in reference to TaylorMade's marketing campaign, which looks to characterize the feeling golfers have with TaylorMade drivers.
It happened again a few days later, when the Philadelphia Wings of the National Lacrosse League became the first professional sports team in America to wear jerseys with their Twitter handles on the back in place of their last names. The switch, which was the result of a campaign that sought to increase the awareness of the Wings' Twitter presence, only lasted one game. The team raffled off the jerseys after the game for charity.
Then it happened again this past week, when Dexter Fowler of the Colorado Rockies tweeted a picture of teammate Eric Young Jr.'s cleats, which featured Young's Twitter handle, @EYjr, on the heal of the cleat.
Wow just looked at the back of my guy @EYJr cleats he's wilin'...then I told him he's wilin' and he laughs...smdh twitter.com/DFowler24/stat...
- Dexter Fowler (@DFowler24) March 10, 2012
If once is an event, and twice is a coincidence, then three times is a pattern; and in this case, the pattern is clear: Twitter is infiltrating sports uniforms.
The reasoning behind the trend isn't hard to figure out. Athletes are learning how helpful Twitter can be, when used correctly, in becoming more marketable and popular. Influential Twitter accounts can lead to new sponsorship deals, as Kevin Durant can attest to. Durant, one of the more influential NBA players on Twitter, recently partnered up with Nike for their newest product, the Nike+ FuelBand. Durant wore the band at the NBA All-Star festivities, and continues to wear the band today. During the day, he tweets about the amount of fuel he has earned, challenges fans to keep up with him, and on occasion, tweets back to those who have. The result is a powerful brand ambassador for Nike, new fans and followers for Kevin Durant, and a higher level of exposure for everyone.
Moving forward, more athletes and companies will look to create similar bonds as Twitter becomes a recognized platform to endorse products. When they do, companies will look for athletes with Twitter influence. Engaging with fans is the key component to building that influence, but the first step in the process is building a large following to engage with. To accomplish that, athletes need to promote their Twitter handle, and for an athlete, there is no better place to gain visibility then on the field. Hence, the growing trend of Twitter handles on uniforms.
For athletes then, the required task is finding an area on a uniform on which to put a Twitter handle. Sounds simple, right? Wrong. Standing in every athlete's way are league policies that state what can and can't appear on a player's uniform. Not surprisingly, for several leagues, the list of what can't appear on a uniform is much longer and more detailed than what can. These policies force athletes to get creative, as Eric Young Jr. did when he put his Twitter handle on the heel of his cleat. Where else can we expect to see Twitter handles pop up?
Major League Baseball's policy specifically violates patches and designs relating to commercial advertisements on any part of the uniform. However, one could argue that a player isn't promoting a commercial entity if it is their personal Twitter handle. MLB also states, "any player other than the pitcher may have numbers, letters, insignia attached to the sleeve of the undershirt." That would seem to indicate undershirt sleeves are fair game. Also, don't be surprised if you see a Twitter handle appear on a player's baseball glove at some point this season.
In the National Basketball Association, players will have to take a page out of Eric Young's playbook and look to their feet. NBA's uniform policy specifically states what is allowed in terms of writing on all pieces of NBA equipment, including headbands, wristbands, calf sleeves and arm sleeves. It also states that, "no unauthorized commercial, promotional or charitable name, mark, logo or other identification can be displayed on player's body, hair or otherwise." However, the sneaker section stipulates only that the sneakers must be white, black and the colors of the team identify only, and that the left and right sneaker must match. Adornments are also prohibited, so if an athlete wants their Twitter handle on their sneaker, they'll need to have it built into the shoe design.
In the National Hockey League, the uniform policy doesn't mention goalie masks or tape on sticks. Goalie masks can get pretty detailed, but I would bet that an artist could find space on there to include a Twitter handle above the facemask, where it would get plenty of exposure. Another area where a player could get their Twitter handle noticed would be on the stick's blade. A player is allowed to tape the blade of the stick, and could easily write a Twitter handle using a permanent marker on the tape.
No league, however, is tougher to crack than the National Football League.
When it comes to uniform policies, the NFL is as detailed and restrictive as they come. This is, after all, the league that fined Buffalo Bills receiver Stevie Johnson for wishing fans a happy new year on his undershirt this past season. The NFL includes "every visible item of apparel" in their definition of a uniform, meaning everything from shoelaces to athletic tape to sideline hats is covered. For athletes in the NFL, I suggest you get extra creative and shave your Twitter handle into the side of your head.
Other sports seem more willing to bend on uniform matters. One would think the PGA tour would be open to the idea of Twitter after the success of #driverlove. Nascar is a sport filled with decals, and is fresh off a Daytona 500 that made a significant impact on Twitter. Might they allow a driver to convert their name above the driver-side window to a Twitter Handle?
However and wherever it happens, Twitter handles will continue to make appearances on professional sports uniforms. For players who seek to use the platform as a marketing tool, visibility is imperative, and uniforms offer the perfect platform. Where do you think we'll see Twitter handles next in sports? Do you think leagues will change their policies to become more accepting of athletes promoting personal Twitter accounts on the field? Let me know in the comments section below.