Bottoms (Line) Up: Knicks Feel The Spirit With 1800 Silver Tequila Marketing Deal
Wednesday, October 27, 2010 at 08:31AM 
October 26, 2010: Proximo Spirits and the New York Knicks have signed multi-year, multi-platform marketing that will promote 1800 Silver Tequila, described as "the fastest growing super-premium tequila on the market."
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
As part of the marketing partnership, 1800 Tequila branding will be featured on the courtside LED and GardenVision center-hung scoreboard at Madison Square Garden. Fans will also have the chance to participate in 1800 Tequila promotional activities in-arena. All messaging will be connected with a responsible drinking statement.
1800 Tequila’s marketing partnership with the Knicks follows the company’s first foray into professional sports in a partnership with the Los Angeles Lakers last season. The Knicks also have a deal with Sobieski vodka. Proximo said that "more professional sports franchise deals" would follow. The brand has national ads running with actor Michael Imperioli but did not indicate if he would be part of Knicks-related marketing efforts.
“1800 Tequila is committed to changing the game in every aspect of the industry,” Elwyn Gladstone, vp-marketing for Proximo, said in a statement. “From introducing our 'Essential Artists' bottles to supporting up-and-coming artists, to launching the first 100 proof silver tequila and expanding in the sports business with our new partnership with the New York Knicks, 1800 is front row, center in today’s diverse consumer culture.”
Actor Michael Imperioli in 1800 Tequila commercial.The NBA is no stranger to hard alcohol marketing deals. Earlier this month, Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment, the sales and marketing arm of the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, which will be home to the NBA's Nets beginning in 2012, signed a five-year deal making premium Russian vodka Stolichnaya a founding partner and the official vodka of the sports and entertainment venue.
The NBA itself and some 25 teams or their venues have signed deals with liquor companies since the 2008-09 season when the league amended a ban that had been in effect since 1991, which limited partnerships with hard liquor brands and forbid placing ads courtside, on team Web sites and other locations. Marketing supporting those alliances is allowed as long as the ads drive home the message of drinking responsibly. The ban did not affect beer. Among others, the NBA and franchises including the Miami Heat and Boston Celtics are aligned with brands of Bacardi.
According to Greg Elliott, svp-marketing partnerships, MSG Sports, "The Knicks are partnering with a lineup of premium brands this season and we are proud to have 1800 Tequila as part of our team. This new partnership provides 1800 Tequila with a unique marketing platform leveraging the magic of Madison Square Garden and reaching the passionate fan base of the Knicks.”