The primary Kentucky Derby was held Might 17, 1875, establishing what would grow to be probably the most well-known horse race on this planet. For many years, the occasion served as one thing of a novelty each spring, as crowds traveled to Churchill Downs to kick off the racing season.
For many years, the TV broadcaster of the race (initially CBS, then ABC, and now NBC) has sought to develop it stature, taking what’s in the end a two-minute dash and turning it into an occasion. NBC believes that it lastly cracked the code, with protection that now spans some 5 hours, and an elevated give attention to trend, meals, and different areas which might be race-adjacent (and conveniently advertiser-friendly).
“We’re in our twenty fifth 12 months of presentation, we began with it being about 90 minutes value, and now we’re as much as 5 hours of presentation,” says Jenny Storms, CMO of tv and streaming for NBCUniversal, in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. “What’s particular in regards to the derby is definitely the confluence of sports activities, leisure, trend, meals and a lot extra that it brings to life. It delivers rather more of a cultural second in a can’t miss occasion past sports activities.”
Storms says that the Derby’s viewers, which surged to 16.7 million viewers final 12 months, now boasts an almost 50-50 demographic cut up between women and men.
The Derby has grow to be NBCU’s spring tentpole, coming after the tip of the NFL season, exterior of the Olympic home windows, however months forward of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and July 4 fireworks present. So the corporate has used its “Symphony” advertising and marketing effort to get the phrase out, with near-ubiquitous protection throughout the Right now present, Tonight Present, CNBC, Premier League protection and different efforts.
This 12 months, for instance, the corporate can have Olympians like Simone Biles and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone collaborating, with The Voice winner Gina Miles performing the nationwide anthem. Steve Kornacki will return to offer a data-driven information to the race on Might 6.
“We proceed to be that house for stay, the aura of nowness, and it’s one thing that you just see that’s fairly constant on our platforms,” Storms says of the corporate’s technique within the house.
And now that the Derby has grow to be a correct TV occasion (the favourite horse to win is “Journalism” at 3-1), NBCU plans to leverage its viewers to drive consciousness of some key initiatives of its personal, together with heavy promotion for its upcoming Epic Universe theme park in Orlando (NBC’s Jerry Bailey and Randy Moss will journey one of many new curler coasters), and the debut of a brand new 2026 Winter Olympics advertising and marketing marketing campaign starring comedians Ray Romano and Sebastian Maniscalco.
NBC additionally plans to advertise the return of the NBA on NBC, on-air and at Churchill Downs, the place an activation is deliberate.
“We will probably be launching this Winter Olympics piece of artistic … we’re excited to actually drive the dialog and get it going round Milano Cortina Olympics,” Storms says. “We’ve got a brand new piece of content material celebrating the NBA’s return to NBC and Peacock; now we have an thrilling sneak peek of the brand new NBC present Vacation spot X, which will probably be popping out of the Kentucky Derby; we’ve bought nice promotion for Peacock’s Poker Face, which 5 days after Kentucky Derby, on Might 8, we’ll launch season two; and once more, leaning into meals, now we have new NBC and Peacock present Sure, Chef with Jose Andres and Martha Stewart, that’s additionally going to be promoted closely throughout the Derby.”
As TV more and more leans into stay occasions, these occasions are actually deliver reworked into advertising and marketing bullhorns for every little thing else the leisure corporations do, and the Kentucky Derby is probably a textbook instance.