What the NFL Schedule Release Can Teach Utilities About Communication
Recently, the NFL released its 2026-27 season schedule, an annual tradition that gives the football-starved fanbase something to feast on during the long offseason.
Why am I writing about this on Energy Central’s Substack?
Anyone who’s followed my work won’t be surprised—I combined my sports and energy obsessions to form a Fantasy Energy League, after all. And as I watched the NFL schedule release morph into its own media event, naturally I couldn’t help but consider the lessons for utilities.
Specifically, I gathered inspiration from a Barrett Media article, which mentioned how “a bare minimum announcement isn’t cutting in anymore for teams trying to own the moment.”
I saw a parallel with power sector communications: Narrative matters, and utilities can (and must) do more to proactively lead the conversation—spanning everything from the grid buildout to energy rates to future tech.
Here are the specific lessons that I think utilities can take from the much-hyped NFL schedule release:
Be proactive and engaging
“What separates the brands that win this week from the ones that simply participate is preparation, creativity, and understanding what the moment is actually worth,” Jason Barrett wrote.
For NFL stakeholders, it’s key at this moment to get proactive and lead the conversation that impacts your fanbase. This also applies to utilities: too often they treat communication as a compliance exercise. But if something matters to the public, then the utility has to be out ahead of it. And to do so, they can’t be afraid to be engaging, thoughtful storytellers.
This messaging can even be lighthearted—when appropriate. As the schedule release ‘event’ has grown, individual NFL teams have started competing to make the most clever and viral content around it:
The Raiders parodied ‘Step Brothers.” The lesson for utilities? Leverage established cultural references to deliver your message, especially when you know your audience.
The Seahawks released faux fragrance ads. Utilities, too, can create a viral moment using in-jokes your community can enjoy. And why not incorporate cameos from local heroes to make those messages resonate?
The Chargers generated a video game visual chock-full of Easter Eggs, showing that anything that makes people want to hit replay only makes the message stickier!
Is an internet parody video too frivolous for something as serious as utility messages? It’s understandable to be cautious there, but let’s be honest—we live in an era where the White House is among the most ardent memelord accounts on social media.
The goalposts have moved and we’ve seen (for better or worse) how nontraditional social media use can effectively widen reach as people feel compelled to share. So when it comes to messages urging people to conserve energy, prepare for weather events, or explaining power bills, creativity can be key.