August 27, 2026
j.hendrickson3/Depositphotos.com
Is the Carhartt / NFL Partnership an Easy Win for Both Parties?
Carhartt is partnering with the NFL, and more specifically the Buffalo Bills, in a new marketing campaign that marries the brand’s blue-collar roots with a growing field of sports advertising, as Modern Retail’s Melissa Daniels outlined.
“The 135-year-old workwear brand is tapping into NFL season with the latest installment of its ‘Made Possible’ campaign. The 30-second spot highlights the construction workers and tradespeople who worked on Highmark Stadium, the new home of the Buffalo Bills that opened ahead of the 2026 season,” Daniels said, pivoting to quote Carhartt VP of marketing and creative Norma Delaney on the natural fit of the campaign.
“We have a lot of authenticity because we’ve just been very focused on our consumer and what their needs are. And as long as we’re always coming back to that, it leads to really interesting marketing efforts because we’re starting the conversation about work that is happening all around us,” Delaney said. Given that Highmark Stadium is the sole new home for an NFL team this year, it seemed a natural fit for the spot.
Carhartt hops aboard a bandwagon fully loaded with other brands fully invested in sports advertising, including Ipsy, Left on Friday, Bud Light, Abercrombie & Fitch, Disney, Champion, and more. And as Daniels underscored, Carhartt itself has experienced a booming interest beyond its traditional tradesperson customer in recent years, attracting a significantly broader audience than in times past. Sister company Carhartt WIP is pushing boundaries with streetwear-inspired fashions, while sub-brand Wylie Welling brings things full circle via the promotion and sale of recycled/upcycled Carhartt products.
But despite inroads being made with a wider consumer base, Delaney was keen to emphasize that Carhartt was serious about sticking to its core values (and value proposition), ensuring that its products are “site-worthy” and rugged enough to last, despite the stresses that trades workers put their clothing through.
“It would be easy to follow a trend and go in that direction, but that’s not why we’re Carhartt,” Delaney concluded.
BrainTrust
Nicholas Morine
Recent Discussions
Discussion Questions
Does the partnership between Carhartt and the NFL have natural synergy, in your opinion? What do you think of the ad campaign itself?
Are there any ways you can think of to further leverage this partnership in terms of product offerings or marketing efforts? Are there any missed opportunities being overlooked?
Do you believe sports advertising more broadly is more of a trend, or is it here to stay in the booming capacity it currently is exhibiting? What headwinds could appear?
Poll
This partnership makes tremendous sense—it is on-brand for both parties. The ad campaign isn’t entirely brilliant but the connection with the people for whom the partnership will be influential is clear. So, publicly it’s all an excellent start.
Is this an easy win? That’s a far, far harder question. The life and death of partnerships is in the details. What costs will Carhartt incur for the deal? what restrictions might the NFL impose? How well will the organizations work together and coordinate? etc. etc. etc.
I hope it works. Partly I have fond memories for how NFL Sunday Ticket turned DirecTV, into a superstar when they were struggling to gain traction among general consumers as opposed to tech enthusiasts. Based on the research my group had done for DirecTV, it was a brilliant move and that was immediately evident in their results.
But will it work? Only time will tell.
Before answering this my main concern was “can I overcome my distaste for the extortion racket that pro-sports (stadium construction) has become to objectively critique what would seem to be a natural ad campain?” Fortunately – or is it unfortunately? – the answer was “yes”…but that’s because I saw little here to like: the longer spot had absolutely no energy – and barely any reference(s) to Carhardt – and while the shorter spot was a little better, on both counts, it isn’t enough.
I’ll rate this a fumble.
More Discussions
What Do New US-Canada Tariffs Mean For Retailers & Consumers as Trade Talks Collapse?
With the recent collapse of trade talks between the U.S. and Canada, both President Donald Trump…Will Walmart’s New Scenario Brand Help Bring Fashion Shoppers Back?
Will Walmart’s new Scenario brand make a notable splash with fashion shoppers?Reconsidering the Role of the Retail Store: Are Shoppers Tired of ‘Feeling Predicted’?
What do you think of JLL’s survey results?
This partnership makes tremendous sense—it is on-brand for both parties. The ad campaign isn’t entirely brilliant but the connection with the people for whom the partnership will be influential is clear. So, publicly it’s all an excellent start.
Is this an easy win? That’s a far, far harder question. The life and death of partnerships is in the details. What costs will Carhartt incur for the deal? what restrictions might the NFL impose? How well will the organizations work together and coordinate? etc. etc. etc.
I hope it works. Partly I have fond memories for how NFL Sunday Ticket turned DirecTV, into a superstar when they were struggling to gain traction among general consumers as opposed to tech enthusiasts. Based on the research my group had done for DirecTV, it was a brilliant move and that was immediately evident in their results.
But will it work? Only time will tell.
Before answering this my main concern was “can I overcome my distaste for the extortion racket that pro-sports (stadium construction) has become to objectively critique what would seem to be a natural ad campain?” Fortunately – or is it unfortunately? – the answer was “yes”…but that’s because I saw little here to like: the longer spot had absolutely no energy – and barely any reference(s) to Carhardt – and while the shorter spot was a little better, on both counts, it isn’t enough.
I’ll rate this a fumble.