AstraZeneca’s Bold Move into Pickleball: AstraZeneca is bringing its marketing to the fast-growing sport of pickleball. The pharmaceutical company has partnered with the Professional Pickleball Association (PPA) to raise awareness for its asthma treatment, Fasenra. The initiative is part of AstraZeneca’s Stepping Back Out campaign, which encourages asthma patients to return to physical activities they enjoy.
A New Approach to Sports Marketing
Matt Gray, U.S. commercial head of Fasenra at AstraZeneca, believes pickleball is an ideal fit for the campaign.
“[Pickleball] fits our demographic super well — we see a lot of patients in that 30- to 60-year-old age group who are taking up pickleball as their sport of choice because it is something that everyone can get back out and do,” (Matt Gray).
The Stepping Back Out campaign, launched last year, features asthma patients who can enjoy physical activities again after using Fasenra. The campaign originally highlighted people missing out on activities by watching social media from their couch. The latest installment is more interactive, depicting friends pulling patients into active settings like frisbee games and pickleball matches.
Interactive Experiences at PPA Events
AstraZeneca’s branding will be visible at multiple PPA tournaments. The campaign debuted at the Texas Open in Dallas and will continue at the Virginia Beach Open in October. The company is using interactive experiences at these events to educate attendees about eosinophilic asthma, a severe form of the condition.
One feature is a digital game where participants serve a pickleball at a screen displaying eosinophils, white blood cells linked to inflammation in eosinophilic asthma.
“They can hit the pickleball at the eosinophils and score points,”. “[This effort] is really about the role of eosinophils in asthma and what Fasenra does for these patients.”(Matt Gray)
Spreading Awareness on a Larger Scale
AstraZeneca aims to reach patients who struggle to control their asthma despite using inhalers. The company estimates that 1.3 million people in the U.S. have severe asthma, with about 70% having the eosinophilic type. However, many patients do not realize their asthma falls into this category.
“If people are failing those asthma controller inhalers, that’s when biologics step in,”. “Driving that awareness of eosinophilic asthma is a big part of what we’re trying to do. When they find out they have a different kind of asthma and that there’s a medication designed to treat it, a lightbulb goes off.”(Matt Gray)
Fasenra is approved for eosinophilic asthma and recently received approval for pediatric patients over six years old. It is also used to treat eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA), a rare autoimmune disease linked to asthma. AstraZeneca is awaiting trial results to expand Fasenra’s use for COPD patients.
Expanding Sports Marketing Efforts
AstraZeneca has a history of sports marketing. The company has worked with the National Hockey League to promote cancer screening and partnered with NASCAR to advertise its COPD inhaler, Breztri Aerosphere.
The Stepping Back Out campaign, including pickleball promotions, will continue to expand on social media platforms like TikTok. Gray hinted that additional marketing assets may be developed as AstraZeneca explores further opportunities in sports marketing.
“I think the aspirational — but not overly aspirational — fit of a sport [like pickleball] that many can participate in is a good place for us to be,”. “It demonstrates what we want to give back with Fasenra, which is that ability to get back into their lives.”(Matt Gray)
News in Brief: AstraZeneca’s Bold Move into Pickleball
AstraZeneca has partnered with the Professional Pickleball Association to promote asthma awareness through its Stepping Back Out campaign. The initiative, featured at PPA events, educates attendees about eosinophilic asthma and Fasenra’s benefits. Interactive experiences and social media campaigns aim to help asthma patients return to physical activities they enjoy.
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