Breitling
Swiss luxury watchmaker partners with TikTok creators to authentically join football culture in America.
Breitling, the NFL and the Power of TikTok Creators: A Touchdown in Cultural Relevance
Objective
Winning on culture before winning attention
When Breitling launched its NFL Editions collection in the US, they made a deliberate choice: lead with football culture, not product features.
Built on weekly rituals, pre-game traditions, and emotional investment that goes far beyond casual viewership, NFL fandom runs deep. Breitling's goal was to become part of that culture.
To bring the vision to life, Breitling partnered with TikTok on a creator-led strategy. Their objective was to prioritize authentic storytelling over product education.
Solution
Creators help integrate Breitling into game-day culture
Working with Joli Berlin, a TikTok Creator Marketplace agency partner, Breitling collaborated with four creators rooted in NFL fandom.
This included @natalientheaguilars, known for her 7.4M-strong San Francisco 49ers superfan family community, and @jordanbrittlovato, who provided a unique and authentic voice for the campaign as the wife of a Philadelphia Eagles player.
All four creators followed a unified creative strategy centered around two storytelling pillars:
1. Preparing for the moment: Creators highlighted the rituals, anticipation, and personal styling choices leading up to game day. Breitling watches were integrated into these preparation narratives, symbolizing readiness, confidence, and personal identity.
2. Living in the Moment: The second pillar captured the emotional highs of game day, from celebrations and reactions to immersive, real-time fandom experiences, reinforcing Breitling's presence within NFL culture.
These creator assets were published as collab posts and amplified using Spark Ads, allowing each video to appear as regular TikTok content from a trusted creator. This made them feel more authentic and less like brand messaging.
To maximize relevance, Breitling activated a Pulse Premiere ESPN NFL Tentpole lineup alongside Spark Ads. This placed the campaign alongside premium NFL content, ensuring the brand appeared where football passion and attention converged strongly on the platform.
To evaluate campaign effectiveness, Breitling ran a Brand Lift Study, Conversion Lift Study, and Store Visits Lift Study. Together, these measurement solutions provided a comprehensive view of brand, behavioral, and retail impact.
Results
Touchdown results across every major indicator
The campaign scored touchdowns across the board, outscoring platform benchmarks and the brand's own historical performance.
Video engagement highlighted the strength of culturally aligned creator storytelling. The campaign delivered a 2-second VTR of 23%, outperforming both the 21% Pulse benchmark and Breitling's 10% historical norm.
Click-through performance also showed meaningful improvement, with CTR (All) at 0.6% versus a 0.4% benchmark and a 0.3% historical average.
Brand impact metrics further underscored the campaign's effectiveness. Intent Lift increased by 5.2% and Preference Lift by 8.2%, both significantly above US retail norms.
Breitling described these results as some of the strongest cross-platform outcomes the brand had achieved in recent years. Beyond paid media performance, the activation generated substantial organic engagement and community amplification, reinforcing the campaign's cultural resonance in America.
Our NFL partnership is built on clear principles of authenticity and shared values. With creator-led storytelling, we have been able to embed Breitling in the culture of American Football, rather than simply advertise within it. As a result, we significantly exceeded engagement and brand impact benchmarks.