Sponsorship information for:

A record opening round that saw one million people in the US watch a live Facebook stream of the Illawarra Hawks and Brisbane Bullets will help the NBL secure sponsors keen to target the American market, a spokesperson from the league has told Sponsorship News.

The game featured NBA prospect LaMelo Ball playing for the Hawks. Ball is the youngest of the high-profile US-based Ball family and brother of LA Laker Lonzo Ball.

The match also posted significant numbers on other social media platforms including nearly 2.5 million views on Twitter.

The NBL has a deal with the social media giant under which a selection of this season’s games will be streamed live on Facebook Watch in the US via the NBL Facebook page.

The NBL’s social media profile has also experienced strong growth over the last year with its Instagram followers more than doubling since the first-round last season and its average engagement on Facebook per post increasing by 250% and by 340% on Twitter in the same period.

A spokesperson from the NBL told Sponsorship News that the NBL was exploring opportunities with Australian and offshore brands looking for exposure in US markets, particularly those looking to engage the difficult-to-reach 15 to 29-year-old male demographic.

Click here to share this article with your network.