Men’s Lacrosse: SPARQ Q&A with Nike executive Ken Dice
Tuesday, April 22nd, 2008 at 7:40 amApril 21, 2008
John Jiloty
InsideLacrosse.com
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Lacrosse has been growing at an exponential rate for some time now, and the major manufacturers and retailers are beginning to take notice. With each season, there are more games on television and more people picking up the game than ever before. Nike is one of the biggest companies in the world, and when it came time to market their new ‘SPARQ’ trainer program, they decided to include MLL players Ryan Powell and Kyle Harrison in the campaign. The ads, available for viewing here, here and here represent the highest profile campaign the game has ever been featured in, as Nike has run the ads on both major networks and ESPN on a frequent basis.Recently, Inside Lacrosse editor in chief John Jiloty traded emails with Ken Dice, Nike Vice President and General Manager for USA Brands, about the future of his company’s involvement with the game of lacrosse.
With all the big names you could have included, and all the potential options you could have run with, why did lacrosse make the cut in this commercial? What does lacrosse being in this ad say about the sport’s place and awareness/recognition at the company?
“We were certain that lacrosse athletes would be a perfect fit for this campaign due to the very nature of the sport and its connection to dynamic training. The opportunity to demonstrate the training elements of speed, power, agility, reaction and quickness provided a perfect platform for Lacrosse.”
“We really feel that the ad reflects an authentic delivery of the core principles of Lacrosse that has great appeal to Lax players and other atheltes.”
Do you feel lacrosse has reached a point where it is recognized as a mainstream sport in the nation’s overall consciousness?
“There’s no doubt that it’s well on the way. The popularity of Lacrosse is increasing at a rapid rate as indicated by the expanding national media coverage of key weekly match-ups and the Final Four. Additionally, there has been a tremendous amount of growth in participation at the youth and H.S. level and not just regionally, but on a national level.
Those two elements in combination have helped to elevate the game to a level unequaled in the past. Just as lacrosse has grown in consumer interest and participation, I fully expect that we will see a significant rise in popularity.”
If this commercial was made 5 years ago, would lacrosse have made an appearance?
“Probably not, but again I believe that lacrosse is the ideal sport to feature the effort that athletes currently devout to dynamic training; and how that training directly correlates to on-field performance.”
How would you describe Nike’s interest in lacrosse moving forward?
Nike has been involved in Lacrosse for the past 20 years. We plan to be very aggressive in our efforts to provide quality and innovative products that assist Lacrosse players in their on-field performance.
Lacrosse is a great sport that we are excited to be a part of and we look forward to its continued growth.
