The Netflix Slam Gave Great Live Tennis – And Even Better Streaming Marketing
04.03.2024 - 21:57
/ variety.com
Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer Netflix stuck the landing on a star-studded exhibition match between tennis superstars Rafael Nadal and Carlos Alcaraz this weekend. Stakes were high on the court, but the Las Vegas showdown was most effective as a lush advertisement for the streamer as a fledgling live sports destination. Taking over the Mandalay Bay’s Michelob Ultra Arena, the inaugural Netflix Slam pit legend Nadal against 20-year-old Alcaraz.
Rafa, as Nadal is affectionately known to millions of global fans, had not played since a hip injury flared up in 2023. Nadal has only faced Alcaraz a handful of times in his career and wound up losing to the prodigy in a nail-biting tie break. No one really lost, though.
Least of all Netflix. Branding was so pervasive in the hotel and casino that pedestrians lined up 100 deep to take photos in front of a “Netflix Slam” sign, installed on a massive wall of tennis balls. The service attracted in-house talent like Charlize Theron (star of Netflix’s “The Old Guard,” who just wrapped production on a sequel), Catherine Zeta-Jones (of the massive hit “Wednesday”) with husband Michael Douglas and Colin Kaepernick (Ava DuVernay’s “Colin in Black & White”) to sit courtside.
Worldwide Netflix viewers were treated to a format-busting televised match. With no advertising breaks and conventional b-roll packages, a group of game veterans including Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick served live commentary panel-style. A few promos for upcoming Netflix projects were slotted in over the three-hour broadcast.
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