ST. JOHN’S
Redstorm Basketball
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Every Block, Every Borough: ‘25/26 Season
THE PROBLEM
After clinching the 2024/2025 Big East Championships, an impressive March Madness performance, and signing a new deal with Adidas, St. John's wanted capitalize on its momentum and further endear itself to the city it calls home.
THE PIVOT
We studied previous season fan engagement to craft a new story for the season: Every Block, Every Borough. An ode to the local people, neighborhoods and cultures that ground the Red Storm Basketball. Including:
>> Introduced an updated design system that pays homage to the textures and tones of New York City.
>> Concepted and produced the first ever Johnnies Nation Podcast, with just under 20K total views on YouTube.
>> For the first time ever, we launched a brand film for the team to introduce the theme to the SJU community on social.
>> Mid-way through the season, we turned to AI to create Back 2 The Block, an in-arena hype film that has been hailed as “one of the best of the season” by SJU fans, athletes and visiting teams alike.
THE PROOF
So far, home-game attendance is still over 22% than the projected average, and social engagement is up by 39%.
The New Reign: 24/25 Season
THE PROBLEM
After a strong first season, we were challenged to plant the flag that we were officially in new era of St. John's basketball with Coach Pitino and the no.1 transfer portal class.
THE PIVOT
We immersed ourselves in the culture of NYC basketball and leveraged community voices to craft “The New Reign,” a seasonal theme designed to put College Hoops on notice that SJU was back. Including:
>> Introduced The New Reign in-arena & social hype film that paid homage to SJU’s roots, while setting the tone for the season.
>> Created a social-first design system with the intent to spark social engagement between games.
>> Secured the team’s first NIL partnership with Avirex, launching a special edition varsity jacket and designed SJU’s first blackout Red Storm uniforms in partnership with Nike, dedicated to the service workers of NYC.
THE PROOF
In all, our work resulted in a +23% YoY increase in home game attendance, the highest recorded in two decades, an 80% growth in social following, with engagements at +244% YoY. Most importantly, our men's team results led to AOR expansion to Women’s Basketball for 25/26 season.
