Pepsi Capitalizes on Knicks Championship Moment
Pepsi is leveraging the New York Knicks' championship victory with a street-level marketing campaign that puts real fans front and center on billboards across Manhattan.
The "WE OUTSIDE" campaign, now live on prominent displays in Times Square and outside Madison Square Garden, features candid photographs of Knicks supporters captured during the Finals series. The imagery ranges from moments of pure joy and disbelief to tears of celebration—all with Pepsi products in hand.
Long History with New York Sports
The activation underscores Pepsi's deep ties to the New York market. The brand has maintained a visible presence at Madison Square Garden for nearly a decade and maintains the iconic Pepsi-Cola sign in Queens, a longstanding fixture of the city's skyline.
Photographers embedded in the streets throughout the Finals series documented unscripted fan reactions, with those images now serving as the creative foundation for the campaign's out-of-home advertising push.
Why It Matters
For operators and brands navigating sports marketing, the campaign demonstrates the value of authentic fan engagement over polished celebrity endorsements. As major metro markets experience high-profile wins, beverage and QSR brands should expect accelerated promotional tie-ins and street-level activations designed to capture momentum in real time.
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Written by FBM Publications Editors
