Chicago Wolves 25th Anniversary Season

We launched an exceptional creative and strategic public relations campaign — which turned out to be award-winning — with the goal of generating earned media and maintaining season-long excitement around the Chicago Wolves' silver anniversary.

The day included elements aimed at a range of audiences: public, media, Wolves stakeholders and the team itself (including former players). The most prominent public-facing initiative was an art installation along Michigan Avenue featuring 15 larger-than-life hockey goalie masks.

It was an impressive display that attracted old and new fans to take photos and share on social media using the hashtags #Wolves25 and #LastTeamStanding. TimeZoneOne invited media to attend a special unveiling of the masks and key Wolves representatives were made available for media interviews.

The public was invited to participate in slapshot competitions, hockey tips and guidance from Wolves greats, and photo opportunities with team mascot Skates. To cap the day off, Chicago enjoyed a spectacular preview of the Wolves’ new fireworks show along the Chicago River.

To maximize fan engagement and brand awareness, the goalie masks stayed on Michigan Avenue until the October 13 home opener. After that, they were dispatched to other key areas across the city, including Allstate Arena, the Rosemont Village ice rink and the 25^th Anniversary Chicago Wolves-sponsored Brookfield Zoo ice rink. During the same period, TimeZoneOne developed a brand new Wolves website to help streamline the path to ticket purchase.

The opening event earned media push concluded with the State of Illinois issuing a proclamation declaring October 14 as Chicago Wolves Day, in recognition of the organization’s 25^th birthday and its contribution to the Chicagoland Community since 1994.

• During the first week of the event, website traffic increased by more than 20% and new users were up 23% on the corresponding period a year earlier.
• The masks installation was viewed by more than 3 million Chicagoans and visitors during the display.
• Ongoing media outreach, with a special focus on the home opener, a Chicago Wolves-sponsored ice rink at Brookfield Zoo and other key events and charity initiatives resulted in nearly $900,000 of publicity value and more than 100 million impressions between the kick-off event and the end of the year.