• by Tanya Gazdik , March 16, 2021

After last year’s disappointing pandemic-related cancellation, Buffalo Wild Wings is back with gusto for this year’s NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament.

The official chicken wing of March Madness is making up for lost time and celebrating the return of the tournament through a campaign called “The Big Dance is Back.”

Sports fans have endured more than 700 long days without March Madness basketball, so this is one of the most anticipated tournaments ever, says Rita Patel, CMO, Buffalo Wild Wings.

Developed by The Martin Agency, the campaign includes five 15-second ads and a 30-second spot posted on YouTube Monday, which already has nearly 2 million views.

Creative features viral dance clips from recent NCAA history such as North Carolina head coach Roy Williams’ dancing in the locker room or the Nebraska bench pretending to be a bobsled team. One spot reinforces BWW’s ownership of overtime, where it’s the first commercial that runs after regulation for every game that that goes to OT during March Madness.

New this year is a TikTok Challenge inspired by the Dance Cam at sports venues. The #BDubsDanceCam Challenge urges fans to put on their dancing shoes and bust a move for the camera. 

#BDubsDanceCam will incorporate music from BWW’s ads and feature a filter effect that makes it rain chicken wings. Select videos will also be featured on TV screens inside Buffalo Wild Wings sports bars during the tournament.

To encourage consumers to sign up for the BWW Blazin’ Rewards loyalty program, the restaurant will give away free boneless wings when games go into overtime as part of the “Overtime Wingtime” promotion.

Lastly, BWW is hosting a Blazin’ Challenge bracket-style competition for fans in the Indianapolis area, where the grand prize is a pair of tickets to the 2021 Final Four and Championship Game as well as free wings for a year. 

Fans can visit MMBlazinChallenge.com for the bracket, competition dates, participating sports bars and full rules.