Dick’s Sporting Goods and Uber deliver fast for Super Bowl fans

BY TRACY MAPLE Managing Editor, Digital Content

Delivery of championship T-shirts will be available right after the Super Bowl to ‘displaced’ fans in Chicago and New York.

As if having their team win Super Bowl 50 isn’t enough of a thrill, football fans in some Chicago and New York ZIP codes will be able to get almost instant gratification with an official NFL championship T-shirt delivered to their door Sunday night.

Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc. and UberRush, the merchandise delivery service of ride-hailing service Uber Technologies Inc., are collaborating to sell and quickly deliver the shirts to “displaced fans” of the Carolina Panthers and Denver Broncos in the two hours after the Super Bowl ends. Online orders for the shirtswill be delivered Sunday night for about two hours following the game and starting again Monday at 9 a.m. Eastern if inventory remains, according to the companies.

Shirts will sell for $28 and Dick’s says it will cover the UberRush delivery fee.UberRush rates are based on distance with a $3 base fare and $4 per mile for a $7 minimum, according to Uber.

“Partnering with Uber to bring this exclusive experience to displaced fans of the Broncos or Panthers living in Chicago and New York City is really exciting for us,” says Ryan Eckel, Dick’s vice president of brand marketing. “Sports provide a crucial sense of community, particularly for those living far from home, so we wanted to find a way to create a ‘home-field’ celebration for the winning team’s fans.”

A recent report by WalletHub, a website and social network for personal finance and small businesses, ranked the best and worst cities for football fans. New York ranked No. 8 and Chicago No. 18. Denver was No. 6 and Charlotte, N.C., home to the Carolina Panthers, was No. 48.

UberRush is available in Chicago, New York and San Francisco. “As the game is taking place in San Francisco this year, we wanted to bring a little celebration to Chicago and New York City as well,” Eckel says.  “Also, through our Jersey Report data, we can certainly see that there are lots of fans in those two cities.”

"Our partnership with Dick’s Sporting Goods is a great example of creative ways that businesses of all sizes can leverage on-demand delivery enabled by UberRush to engage with their customers,” said Michael Conti, General Manager, UberEverything NYC.

Dick’s is No. 70 in the Internet Retailer 2015 Top 500 Guide. Its Jersey Reportshows top-selling jerseys by player and team, and consumers can customize the search results. This week, for example, the showdown between Panthers quarterback Cam Newton and the Broncos’ Peyton Manning has Newton pulling ahead of Manning at the end the week, with 20-30% of sales. But Manning led most of the week, capturing 17%-25% of jersey sales at Dick’s.

Newton and Manning also have two of the top-selling jerseys in the NFL online store, though New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady still holds the leadfor quarterbacks in the April through December period measured.