Stefon Diggs & JJ Watt Speak On the Legacy of Gatorade at the Super Bowl
Written by SOURCE on February 11, 2023
When it comes to sports, there are specific brands that have become synonymous with athletics, almost becoming a piece of the fabric that makes sports great. Think of names like Nike, Adidas, Spalding, or Wilson. These single names standout immediately for athletic wear and the products that various sports use during competition. Another iconic brand that fits this bill is Gatorade.
For nearly 60 years, Gatorade has built its brand to become the premier performance drink in the sports market, and one of the most iconic brands when it comes to championships, with coaches from winning teams getting drenched in a Gatorade path upon becoming champions. Over the course of its lifetime, Gatorade has been represented by some of the biggest names in sports, and with the Super Bowl on the horizon, some of the NFL’s biggest stars spoke on what it has meant to be partnered with such an iconic brand.
“It feels amazing. I feel like growing up we all grew up on Gatorade, that’s all we knew. I didn’t know anything else but Gatorade,” said Buffalo Bills All-Pro wide receiver Stefon Diggs. “They are a great brand, they have been around forever. The greats have always been with Gatorade and it makes a lot of sense.”
One of those greats that Diggs speaks of is JJ Watt, the Canton-bound defensive end who just recently announced his retirement at the end of the 2022 season. Watt joked that he knew it was time because he could still play and didn’t want somebody to tap him on his shoulder to tell him the game had passed him by. But during the course of his 12-year career, he has been one of the faces of the Gatorade brand.
“Gatorade has been unbelievable,” Watt tells Complex. “They have been with me throughout my rookie year, my whole NFL career. It’s iconic, it’s synonymous with success, it’s synonymous with athletes. It is the best of the best for a reason.”
For the last 40 years, Gatorade has been the de facto drink partner with the NFL on Super Bowl Sunday, which only makes it right that during the NFL’s biggest weekend, the brand goes all out with the promotion of its new energy drink Fast Twitch.
“It’s like a pick-me-up. It’s some good caffeine before a workout or good energy before the day,” says Diggs. “I typically will use it before a workout, or before I would get my day started.”
The generational gap between stars such as JJ Watt, Stefon Diggs and DK Metcalf shows how Gatorade has been able to not only last to this point, but continue to thrive over the course of its existence. Maintaining it’s one of a kind brand while continuing to build a bridge to new generations of athletes with the current faces of sports.
When the Super Bowl happens on Sunday, the Chiefs and Eagles will be at the forefront of the spectacle, with Rihanna also looming large. But there is a strong chance you won’t be able to escape the Gatorade lightning bolt as well. And it has been that way for the last four decades.
