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National Football League

Gold Stevie Award Winner 2012, Click to Enter The 2014 American Business Awards

Company: National Football League, New York, NY
Entry Submitted By: Rubenstein Communications, Inc.
Company Description: The National Football League (NFL) is the highest level of professional American football in the United States and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. The NFL is an unincorporated 501(c)(6) association, a federal nonprofit designation, comprising its 32 teams.
Nomination Category: Company / Organization Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Corporate Social Responsibility Program of the Year - Up to 2,500 Employees

Nomination Title: National Football League's PLAY 60

Tell the story about what this nominated organization achieved since January 1 2012 (up to 525 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

NFL PLAY 60 is a national youth health and fitness campaign that encourages kids to be active for 60 minutes a day. Designed to tackle the childhood obesity epidemic, it leverages the NFL’s commitment to health and fitness and the global reach of its brand. Based on the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ recommendation that kids play actively for 60 minutes a day, the comprehensive, year-round PLAY 60 program includes the NFL PLAY 60 Challenge, focused on fitness and physical activity, and Fuel Up to Play 60, focused on nutrition and school environments.

We activate the campaign at NFL games, on television, in schools and communities nationwide, and partner with organizations ranging from the American Heart Association to First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! initiative to create multiple points of engagement. Through our annual NFL PLAY 60 Super Bowl Contest, youth tell us how staying active improves their lives. The winner attends the Super Bowl and hands the ball to the head official prior to kickoff. 10,000 kids applied this year. We elevate messaging through televised PSAs featuring prominent athletes, such as Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton and Detroit Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson. The PSAs run during NFL games and digitally.

In thousands of schools nationwide, the NFL PLAY 60 Challenge, with the American Heart Association, teaches educators and students to integrate daily fitness into classroom lessons. Fuel Up to Play 60, with National Dairy Council, teaches kids to advocate for healthier schools. We also promote youth fitness by sponsoring NFL Flag Football; NFL Punt, Pass and Kick; NFL Girls Flag Football; and after-school and day camp fitness programs.

Since we launched NFL PLAY 60 in 2007, our 32 teams have hosted thousands of NFL PLAY 60 events, including more than 1,300 this year, from the Youth Football Festival in New York’s Central Park to the NFL PLAY 60 Pro Bowl Community Blitz in Hawaii. Our League-wide day of service, Hometown Huddle, with United Way, has created 150+ Youth Fitness Zones nationwide. NFL players help communities build playgrounds, walking trails, indoor training rooms, and tracks.

Through our partnership with The Cooper Institute and its FITNESSGRAM system, the NFL Foundation has invested $4 million to bring NFL PLAY 60 FITNESSGRAM free to 1,120 schools and promote PLAY 60 messaging to more than 22 million children it reached in all 50 states. This fitness tool, mandated in Texas and Georgia and in New York City, gives parents and teachers a gauge on student fitness and helps determine where to improve.

We track campaign awareness with a weekly, online survey. Through NFL PLAY 60, youth health and fitness continues to be the top social cause associated with the League; 84 percent of NFL viewers link PLAY 60 to the NFL. Our programs are in 77,000 schools and more than 500,000 students participate in NFL FLAG Football or NFL Punt, Pass and Kick. Surveys also reveal that our programs motivate adults and students to modify habits to achieve better health.

Media coverage has included The Today Show, Associated Press, FOX Sports, Sirius Radio, the Jim Rome Show, and local coverage in all 32 NFL markets.

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Provide a brief (up to 125 words) biography about the leader of this nominated organization:

Roger Goodell is the National Football League’s eighth CEO, beginning in  September 2006.

Commissioner Goodell has strengthened the game and all 32 NFL franchises by  launching innovative media initiatives and new international games, expanding  community service platforms, revamping programs to support players and former  players off the field, tightening the league’s anti-steroids policy, and   securing a landmark 10-year Collective Bargaining Agreement with the NFLPA.
  
Under his leadership, fan interest has soared, with the largest television  audiences in league history and growth in online/social media engagement.   Goodell has addressed issues such as player health/safety, retired player medical needs/pensions, personal conduct, revenue sharing, and stadium  construction.   
  
Goodell started his 24-year NFL career as an administrative intern, worked up to various executive roles, and became COO in 2001.

 

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