Cal Poly, Montana State, Wyoming to Anchor New LEARFIELD College Rodeo Portfolio
PLANO, Texas – LEARFIELD complements its robust college offerings that connects brands to college fans and experiences by launching LEARFIELD College Rodeo – a new business line dedicated to elevating college rodeo and embracing the widespread influence and popularity of the western heritage and culture.
The rodeo teams at Cal Poly, Montana State and Wyoming anchor the newly established LEARFIELD College Rodeo portfolio. LEARFIELD will leverage its innovative, data-driven strategies in digital and on-site fan engagement, in-venue branding, original content development through LEARFIELD Studios, and integration with student-athlete name, image and likeness (NIL), among other marketing assets, to deliver authentic fan connections for local, regional and national brands, as it does for more than 180 college athletics departments around the country.
“Rodeo is distinctively an American experience, and LEARFIELD College Rodeo will create avenues for brands to deepen their engagement in the western lifestyle while increasing exposure for the hardworking young men and women that participate in the unique college sport,” said Andrew Wheeler, LEARFIELD Executive Vice President. “Western-influenced sports and entertainment are enjoying unprecedented growth, and we look forward to harnessing that growth to generate new revenue and increased brand awareness for our university partners.”
LEARFIELD, the industry leader in intercollegiate athletics multimedia rights representation, manages and protects the official school IP and oversees innovative sponsorships with thousands of corporate partners. Currently, 21 schools in LEARFIELD’s multimedia rights portfolio have rodeo teams, and there are more than 100 club-level rodeo teams throughout the U.S.
According to Cal Poly Rodeo Head Coach Ben Londo, “Bringing LEARFIELD on to lead The Cal Poly Rodeo sponsorship and marketing assets has been an advantageous step towards building our program’s bandwidth, and we look forward to the growth our sponsorship efforts will have in years to come with LEARFIELD by our side.”
Shelby Rasmussen joins LEARFIELD College Rodeo as the coordinator for operations. Shelby was part of the 2021 Montana State Women’s Rodeo National Championship Team and most recently served as assistant rodeo coach at Montana State. “I am excited to join the LEARFIELD College Rodeo division as we promote the collegiate rodeo platform and connect fans to brand partners in a meaningful way,” said Rasmussen.
For more information about LEARFIELD College Rodeo, contact Brad Poe at bpoe@learfield.com.
LEARFIELD is a media, data, and technology services leader in intercollegiate athletics. The company unlocks the value of college sports for brands and fans through an omnichannel platform with innovative content and commerce solutions. LEARFIELD services include licensing and collegiate sports properties’ multimedia sponsorship management; publishing, audio, digital and social media; data analytics and insights; ticketing software; and ticket sales, premium seating, and fundraising services; branding; campus-wide business and sponsorship development. Since 2008, it has served as title sponsor for NACDA’s acclaimed LEARFIELD Directors’ Cup, recognizing athletic departments across all divisions.