Wave Sports + Entertainment (“Wave”) initially set out to create a digital series featuring NFL players that could provide fans unparalleled access and candid insights into the NFL, and found the perfect fit in the Kelce Brothers. By leaning into their beloved personalities and natural brotherly chemistry, our primary creative goal was to showcase the unique perspective, journey and bond of brothers who went from backyard ball in Cleveland Heights to future Hall of Fame NFL players.
As the first season went on, we aimed to build on the momentum and success of the first few months with even more fan engagement and hype around the epic Kelce Bowl. Entering its second season, the goal was to become more connected to the loyal fanbase that supports the show, with the creation of a dedicated website and opportunities for fans to get involved in different segments each week, including “No Dumb Questions,” “Fan art of the Week,” and most recently a fan voted “NFL Best Team Name” bracket.
By utilizing Wave Sports + Entertainment’s network of 130m+ highly engaged followers globally, built by an in-house team of expert social media creatives, we achieved our initial goal of growing ‘New Heights’ quickly and establishing a consistent drumbeat of attention and engagement on social media and interest from traditional media within the first few months of launching.
As with the first season, a major challenge we face is how to make this show stand out from all the others in an increasingly crowded player-centric podcast space and not lose steam or become overly saturated. By being flexible to the demands of an in-season NFL schedule, we’ve managed to keep the show on a consistent weekly schedule for fans to look forward to each week. The brothers remain authentic in providing their uniquely insider perspectives and insights, and the community of fans supporting the series has continued to grow and connect with each other as we have created additional opportunities for viewers to get involved in the show segments as well as attend in-person events throughout the year such as the sold out ‘New Heights Live’ event in Kansas City. We remain consistent with our social media marketing and programming strategy that prioritizes short-form, snackable clips as a growth lever on TikTok, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube shorts. This social engagement strategy and how Wave approaches serving modern-day fandom is a huge factor in the show’s continued growth.
“New Heights” consistently ranks as a top 5 sports podcast on Apple and Spotify, and held #1 on the Apple and Spotify sports podcast charts for 4 months straight. It first reached #1 on the overall Apple podcast charts earlier this year and now reaches #1 on a weekly basis. The “New Heights” fan community growth has continued to grow over the last year reaching 2.1M YouTube Subscribers, 3.9M TikTok Followers, 356K Twitter/X Followers, 2.2M Followers on Instagram, and racked up over 2.4B total views.
We had two successful events over the past year -- a “New Heights” branded party at the Super Bowl and the other being “New Heights Live,” which was a one night only event at the Kansas City Music Hall -- the live show sold out within minutes of tickets going on-sale. We also have had numerous blue chip brands join “New Heights” including State Farm, Accelerator, PrizePicks, Buffalo Wild Wings, Experian, and more. Inbound interest from brands has also shattered records. We also launched the first “New Heights” apparel in partnership with Homage, a leader in sports team apparel. Hoodies and tees flew off virtual shelves in the all-time-most-successful launch in Homage’s history, totalling well into six figures of revenue within a few weeks of launch.
“New Heights” changed the game for sports podcasts this year, and it went to another level when the brothers faced off against each other in the Super Bowl. “New Heights” is a sports and pop culture mainstay, and it is regularly highlighted on Monday Night Football on ESPN, Sunday Night Football on NBC, and was named the Sports Illustrated Sports Podcast of the Year. The show won an Adweek Audio Award for Best Sports Podcast, and made it to the top of the “Best Podcasts of 2023” lists for both Spotify and Apple. Journalists consistently rely on “New Heights” for insider commentary on NFL news and rumors as well as general entertainment stories.
