The Fall Surge: Why Brands Should Target Live Sports on Hudl
Aug 1, 2025
4 min Read
October is when your brand can tap into the emotional peak of daily live sports and the growing momentum of consumer spending on Hudl.
No form of media delivers the opportunity for brand connection like live sports. In a world flooded with content, live games still capture rare levels of attention, emotional investment and viewer engagement.
The opportunity for this type of engagement isn’t limited to the biggest games of the national sports calendar. High school sports offer consistent, high-impact moments of connection thousands of times over, every season.
With 99% of U.S. high schools on Hudl, it’s the go-to platform for live high school sports. During peak seasons, games stream on Hudl nearly every day, giving brands a powerful, cost-effective way to tap into the energy of live sports, at a fraction of the cost of national broadcasts. No other platform allows brands to connect with local communities at such a national scale.
In these communities, livestreamed games are mini community events. Families and parents rally around their local schools, supporting their favorite teams and athletes. They invest their time and money, and watch with the high intent that comes with that level of investment.
When Live Sports Peak
Brands looking to scale local connections as part of a diverse media mix should consider October on Hudl a strategic entry point. Our team can help you build a smart, customized approach that aligns with your specific goals. Fall sports are in their peak, with games in sports like soccer, volleyball and football dominating the weekly schedule for schools.
October 2024 saw 30 million highlight views and 6.5 million livestream views on Hudl, with 165% broadcast growth year-over-year as schools continue to lean into Hudl’s fan tools, and community awareness grows.
It’s a smart month for brands to invest not only because of the activity on the platform, but also for the months it precedes. Fall playoff moments seamlessly transition into the holiday season; months marked by emotion, family connection and constant sports action.
Aside from being a busy time for shopping, it’s a defining time for sports families. Between senior seasons, holiday tournaments and captivating individual performances, Hudl captures the moments that matter most to athletes and their communities.
Winter sports, especially basketball, take center stage during this time, with packed gyms, buzzer-beaters and rising stars fueling a steady stream of highlights and livestreams. Families are watching together, reliving plays on the couch and sharing moments across group chats and social media.
Winter has also become a defining moment for women’s sports on Hudl. In just the last two years, fan growth has increased by 85%, fueled by 53% more female athletes on the platform over the past five years. Highlight creation alone is up 122% over the last four years, signaling not only more talent, but more visibility and momentum.
With basketball uploads and views surging into December, Hudl offers brands an opportunity to meet their audience in the heart of this activity, where emotion drives action and attention is at its peak.
UBT: A Playbook for Local Connection
Curious how brands have built community connections on Hudl? Look no further than Union Bank & Trust (UBT).
UBT came to Hudl with a clear goal: increase brand awareness while supporting high school sports across its home state of Nebraska.
As a locally rooted institution, UBT sought more than just impressions. They wanted meaningful engagement with athletes, families and fans across the state. UBT found an authentic way to bring their “You Belong Here” message to life by showing up on Hudl Fan, where pride, community and emotion intersect.
Through multi-platform integration, UBT established a consistent and thoughtful presence across the Hudl Fan experience. Their brand was woven into athlete highlight videos, livestream broadcasts and sponsored content across a wide range of sports like football, basketball, volleyball, soccer. They even went a level deeper into local communities, sponsoring events like musicals and spelling bees.
Strategic display ads and pre-roll video placements ensured visibility across Nebraska communities, while direct sponsorship of schools like Malcolm High School allowed them to deepen their connection at the local level.
By being part of the most meaningful local sports moments, Union Bank didn’t just build awareness, they built trust and relevance with the audiences who matter most.
How Brands Can Act
As livestreaming continues to surge on Hudl in October and through the holiday season, there's a real opportunity for brands to build meaningful connections both locally and on a national level.
Brands can break through by showing up where the engagement already lives: in the heart of local communities, at the center of shared moments and across the wide range of sports and school events that bring people together.
Hudl offers more than just reach; it’s where attention meets emotion, and where smart brands meet their audience in the most important moments.
Get in touch with us to build your custom media plan at hudl.com/advertise.
