ESPN Urges Viewers to Ditch Work, Go to Ballgames

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ESPN wants to hear good excuses why viewers should ditch work and go to a ball game instead.

The “Ditch Days” promotion, launching Sunday, is part of ESPN’s “Life Needs Sports” brand campaign.

The network is encouraging viewers to share their best reasons why they should skip the job on Twitter. The best original ideas will win a pair of tickets to an upcoming Major League Baseball day game.

Working with ad agency Droga5, ESPN said it will distribute 300 game tickets during the promotion.

Related: These Are Major League Baseball's Biggest TV Advertisers

“We wanted a tangible and fun way to share the Life Needs Sports campaign with our fans. Giving them a way to take the day off and enjoy sports is the perfect way to do it,” said Wanda Young, senior VP, Marketing and Consumer Engagement at ESPN. “We look forward to seeing the fan’s creativity.”

Here’s how the promotion works:

· Fans visit ESPN.com/ditchdays and pick the team whose game they’d like to attend.

· They tweet their Ditch Day excuse with the team’s hashtag.

· ESPN’s judges will pick the five most original excuses for each team and contact the winners.

· The winners and their guests will skip work and enjoy a day at the ballpark, thanks to ESPN.

The first teams scheduled to host Ditch Day winners are the Detroit Tigers and Philadelphia Phillies.

Jon Lafayette
Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.