Michelob Ultra’s ‘Courtside’ campaign created by FCB New York takes home Platinum OBIE Award

The Out of Home Advertising Association of America (OAAA) announced the 80th Annual OBIE Award Winners on May 18. OAAA presented 49 awards during a live ceremony held at the Geopath/OAAA 2022 OOH Media Conference & Expo on Marco Island.

This year’s top honour, the Platinum OBIE Award, went to Michelob Ultra FCB New York for its cutting-edge “Courtside” campaign. An OAAA release states, “The project pushed the definition of OOH with a collaborative use of technologies that digitally immersed fans into the NBA bubble’s virtual stands from home, finding a creative way to inject the contagious energy and joy that a live audience can bring to a game. COVID-19 could have thrown the beverage company’s first year as the NBA’s official beer sponsor into a tailspin, but the ingenuity of the “Courtside” campaign led Michelob ULTRA’s sales to grow 32 percent via 13 billion campaign impressions, 81.5 million hours of NBA coverage, and ticket promotions”.

“Courtside” also received Gold OBIE Award wins in five categories: Entertainment & Live Events, Custom Installation, Food & Beverage, Digital Design, and Interactive.