Constellation Brands signed a new sponsorship deal with WWE for its Corona, Modelo and Victoria labels. Under the deal, being largely activated next year, Constellation gets category exclusivity with SummerSlam, WWE’s second-biggest event of the year after WrestleMania and one that is nicely timed with the heaviest beer-consumption season. As the “Official Beer of SummerSlam,” the brewer also will sponsor a match within the PPV broadcast. WWE talent will make appearances and do social media on behalf of the company. Those Constellation brands will support with digital and social efforts on WWE outlets, point-of-sale displays and TV ads on “Monday Night Raw” and “Friday Night Smackdown,” which are favorites among 18-49 Hispanic males. The new deal follows a test run by Constellation at WrestleMania this past April, through which Modelo leveraged a platform honoring the pandemic contributions of first responders and frontline healthcare workers. “The (WrestleMania) audience was strong, and there were no other sports on at the time, but it was also about the engagement and reach we got using (WWE’s) talent," said Constellation VP/Field, Lifestyle & Experiential Marketing Rene Ramos. “That engagement and their social media strength was key for us. ... It allowed us to tap into a different audience segment that we weren’t effectively reaching."
LONG PURSUIT FULFILLED: WWE (and every other property) has been chasing Constellation for more than three years, a pursuit that included a meeting with wrestling legend Ric Flair on South Beach prior to Super Bowl LIV earlier this year. “We did that (WrestleMania) deal, which included a TV spot and four WWE personalities in about a week, so I’d say their urgency and nimbleness really showed us something," Ramos said.
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