For the first time in a decade, the city of San Francisco will play host to the Super Bowl. Albeit the game itself will be played in nearby Santa Clara, about 40 miles away from where Candlestick Park once stood. Every year, the Super Bowl is the most-viewed television event in the United States. It touches on sports, culture, music, and advertising, where audiences around the country have an interest in something revolving around the game.
For sports radio stations, the week prior to the Super Bowl presents another opportunity to host shows from radio row. It is a massive content creator’s dream. Filled with outlets from around the world bringing the vibes of the big game to their local home market or social feed. The opportunity to have the Super Bowl in your own backyard is a unique experience. An experience that 95.7 The Game Brand Manager Matt Nahigian understands does not happen often.
“The initial reaction to the Super Bowl returning was this is an incredible opportunity for us to capture the biggest event in sports and bring it to our audience,” said Nahigian.
It has been nine years since Nahigian entered the doors at the San Francisco-based Audacy brand. The Super Bowl next month will be his first as brand manager where the spectacle lands in his home market. Nahigian is a veteran of the work it takes to execute a week of programming from radio row. However, this experience is different.
Instead of concentrating solely on the programming of the day, there is a balance of working with community partners as well. That includes plotting and executing a showcase of everything that makes the Bay Area a destination to visit.
“Our relationship with the Bay Area Host Committee has been incredible. We started the relationship a year and a half ago. Not only to start the process with the Super Bowl, but also the NBA All-Star Game,” explained Nahigian. “The city is looking at this as an opportunity to display how it’s one of the coolest areas in the country.”
Radio Row Evolution
Nahigian has led 95.7 The Game’s efforts in working with the Host Committee in finding ways to partner with events surrounding the Super Bowl. Every year, the Super Bowl draws millions of fans for concerts, parties, and the NFL Experience. This allows partners to provide access to those events as part of the partnership.
For the audience, the Super Bowl experience has morphed over generations, and that evolution includes radio row. A decade ago, it would have been stunning to see anything other than a local radio station broadcasting from radio row at the Super Bowl. Today, radio row, often dubbed media row, consists of a mix of traditional, digital, and television outlets. All looking to grab the audience’s attention with “Big Game Coverage.”
For Nahigian, the value he places on being live from radio row has waned over the years. However, he has been excited by the recent surge of celebrity involvement during Super Bowl week.
“It used to be that there were hundreds of stations there. Every celebrity or athlete would walk through. After COVID-19 in 2021, it kind of went the other way. However, now it’s coming back,” says Nahigian. “It’s really good to see that radio row is going back to being the epicenter of coverage for the Super Bowl.”
Any market chosen to host the Super Bowl should consider itself lucky. For sports radio stations, however, there is always a decision to be made about attending radio row. Nahigian noted the many factors that play into that decision, but since 2020 his mindset on attending has changed.
“After COVID, I felt as though we didn’t need to be there [radio row],” says Nahigian. “But going forward, this will be a great opportunity to jump back on. To bring the passion and everything that comes with the Super Bowl to your city. My mind has changed a little bit on ‘should we be there’ if it wasn’t in our city compared to a few years ago.”
A Team Effort
A major reason for that shift is the quality of the guest list available to 95.7 The Game’s programs. Radio row is not only a unique setting to broadcast from, but the level of access to celebrities is a rarity for many stations. Sports figures of past and present to movies and everything in between. Stations that attend gain content opportunities that drive ratings, revenue, and reach like never before.
Admittedly, Nahigian is a workhorse. His plan for the week is to be present on site at every broadcast. Directing talent, securing guests, and ensuring sponsor mentions are properly balanced.
“People would say I’m too hands-on, and I totally agree. But I’m hands-on because I love it. It’s important that I’m involved to make the shows as good as they can be,” explained Nahigian. “If I’m not involved the entire time, what the hell am I doing? This is why I got in the business. Is it a lot of work? Sure, but who cares.”
Nahigian called the radio row experience “a circus.” It is a massive room with hundreds of media outlets chasing exclusive content opportunities to bring back to their home markets. The preparation of lining up guest appearances begins in the later months of the calendar year. He explained that securing guests is a team effort, with the goal of finding personalities who resonate with the 95.7 The Game listener.
“I’ve gotten incredible support from other Audacy stations. Especially 105.3 The Fan in Dallas. They are incredibly involved in the guest booking for what our Audacy stations are going to do,” says Nahigian.
He detailed how brand managers from multiple Audacy stations across the country share communication on potential radio row guests. There is a constant flow of phone calls and emails, all aimed at maximizing opportunities with top-name guests.
“The communication between the sports stations is amazing,” said Nahigian. “That’s one of the great parts of being in a company that has stations like 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, 670 The Score in Chicago, and 94 WIP in Philadelphia, among others. We all work together, and it makes it easier for everybody.”
Setting The Example
Nahigian is approaching 95.7 The Game’s programming strategy as a rough draft for the World Cup, which arrives later this year. While radio row will account for the majority of the coverage, the brand’s growing digital platforms will be fully engaged in producing content from across the entire experience.
He noted that this is especially important for generating additional revenue. While the on-air product remains the top priority, finding creative opportunities to sell alongside it matters just as much.
“This is the most important part of my job. How do we monetize this to the max, but not water down the content? Bottom line is, you must have a sales staff, VP of sales, and market manager that you can tell we’re at our max. Then get creative after that,” explained Nahigian. “It’s not about limiting things. My job is to come up with creative angles for clients.”
With Nahigian’s mindset evolving on the importance of being present on radio row, this year’s opportunity is vital. The stronger the results, the more likely the content strategy can carry into future Super Bowls. It is a balance every programmer faces, ensuring the content resonates with the audience while maximizing revenue in the home market of the Super Bowl.
The countdown to launch grows closer each day. After months of planning, meetings with partners, and support from his Audacy team, Matt Nahigian is ready to lead his group and welcome the nation to the Bay Area for Super Bowl XL.
“It’s awesome for the city. Plus, it’s a great opportunity not only for us, but for everyone to grab the spotlight and show the country who we are,” says Nahigian. “There’s nothing better than being around and trying to help that week become the best week we’ve had at 95.7 The Game in a long time.”
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John Mamola is Barrett Media’s sports editor and daily sports columnist. He brings over two decades of experience (Chicago, Tampa/St Petersburg) in the broadcast industry with expertise in brand management, sales, promotions, producing, imaging, hosting, talent coaching, talent development, web development, social media strategy and design, video production, creative writing, partnership building, communication/networking with a long track record of growth and success. He is a five-time recognized top 20 program director in a major market via Barrett Medi’s Top 20 series and has been honored internally multiple times as station/brand of the year (Tampa, FL) and employee of the month (Tampa, FL) by iHeartMedia. Connect with John by email at John@BarrettMedia.com.
