It’s probably small consolation to Philadelphia Eagles fans who had hopes of sporting their team’s gear at a Super Bowl victory parade this year, but all that swag printed prior to the big game is getting a second life with people who lost more than a football game.
The NFL pre-orders Super Bowl championship attire for both teams that make it to the Big Game so that the winning team’s gear can immediately hit store shelves. The league launched a partnership with nonprofit Good360 nine years ago so merchandise prepared for the losing team wouldn’t end up in landfills or be relegated to the Land of Misfit Toys.
Good360, in Alexandria, Virginia, will distribute the apparel through its vetted network of more than 100,000 partner nonprofits in regions of Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe and the Middle East that the NFL has approved. All must agree to stringent compliance protocols to ensure none of it ends up on the secondary market.
None of this will erase the sting of losing the Super Bowl, but Eagles fans still smarting from their team’s loss to the Kansas City Chiefs can at least take comfort from knowing their team’s gear will be bringing comfort to those who desperately need it, said Good360 CEO Romaine Seguin. “We are thankful for this longstanding partnership with the NFL, which reflects their commitment to charitable and responsible business practices and reinforces Good360’s mission of closing the need gap and opening opportunity for all,” Seguin said.
Apparel of teams that lost the AFC and NFC championship games will also be distributed through Good360. The “purposeful giving” program sustains Good360’s continuing mission, which is supported by a partnership with more than 400 other major donors that have given everything from mattresses to children’s toys and personal care items.
The large volume of donors occasionally leads to some unusual product donations, such as the 172 helium tanks the organization recently repurposed for a New York City group that sends clowns with balloons to entertain children in hospitals.
The past year was especially active for Good360, through which more than $2.5 billion in items – a 42% increase compared to 2021 – went to more than 20 million people worldwide. Much of the relief went to refugees from war in Ukraine, as well as people displaced by flooding and other natural disasters in the United States. Similar efforts now are underway to help the hundreds of thousands left homeless by earthquakes in Turkey and Syria and who desperately need shelter, clothing, food, water, and medical care to make it through the winter.
Good360 is first and foremost a humanitarian organization, but its work also aids companies in achieving sustainability and zero-waste goals by extending the useful life of millions of pounds of goods kept out of landfills each year. “It’s important to reduce our carbon footprint, especially in Super Bowl host cities, and we look forward to working with Good360 as well as our other partners to reduce and reuse wherever possible,” said Anna Isaacson, senior vice president of social responsibility for the NFL.
