Sports Marketing Executive Reveals How Dale Earnhardt Jr. Forged a Good Partnership With an Iconic Brand

When one thinks of the late great Dale Earnhardt Sr., the first thing that comes to mind is his #3 Goodwrench car. A NASCAR driver is as memorable as his car number and the brand associated with him. Just ask Kyle Busch and M&M’s, Jimmie Johnson and Lowes, Jeff Gordon and DuPont, and many more. In a similar vein, one iconic brand has always been associated with Dale Earnhardt Jr., and that is Budweiser. The spearhead behind that iconic partnership was sports marketing executive, Steve Uline.
Recently. he sat down with Kelley Earnhardt-Miller on the Dale Jr. Download. The two enjoyed a great conversation, and among many topics discussed, they spoke about Dale Jr. and Budweiser. This comes on the back of step-mother Teresa Earnhardt finally relinquishing the #8 number, earlier this year. To make matters even better, Dale Jr. will not only compete in the South Carolina 400 dirt race but reunite with his #8 and Budweiser sponsor.
Uline revealed the history of the Dale Earnhardt Jr. and Budweiser sponsorship. According to him, there were a number of hurdles to navigate. However, he was adamant that Dale Jr. had to be the one to be under the Budweiser beer umbrella. The sports marketing executive also shared some interesting stories about the former NASCAR driver.
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Why did Budweiser choose Dale Earnhardt Jr.?
Uline told Kelley Earnhardt-Miller, “We knew we had the magic name. For us, we felt like he was going to have the right attitude, the right personality. We’re a beer company, we’re not selling milk, Kleenex, M&M’s. No offense to them, but you got to have the right person, right personality that it matches up. It’s real then, it’s truly real. He’ll tell you he didn’t like beer in the beginning, but he sure as hell ordered a lot of it down to his place. You heard the story that Ty told, it was on Dirty Mo with Junior. He told the story where the wholesaler called Ty. We called Ty and said, ‘The wholesaler called. He wants to know what’s going on. Jr’s ordering more beer than a lot of retail accounts are.’ We’re like, ‘Yeah, that’s good!’”
As one would expect, having a famous father was definitely a key that opened a number of locked doors. However, the move was not purely nepotistically motivated. According to the former Anheuser-Busch executive, another point in Dale Jr.’s favor was that he had the right attitude and personality. Of course, Dale Earnhardt laid out the foundation, and there was an element of risk involved.
via Imago Dale Earnhardt Jr.
Uline revealed that Dale Jr. was entering an era where the old dogs were still in their prime. As for himself, he was considered young, up-and-coming blood, and he was far from the only one. Another youngster who rose through the ranks with him was Matt Kenseth, and it was a fascinating time to be in. From there, Uline elected to take a calculated risk and inked a long-term deal with Dale Earnhardt Jr.
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Steve Uline tried to tip-toe his way through the deal, but once they left HMS, alarm bells started ringing at the Budweiser headquarters.
Steve Uline revealed his bold call
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He continued, “We didn’t even tell the Budweiser brand we were doing this, and that was a bone of contention. Who owns the sport, does the brand own the sport? Does sports marketing own the sport? There’s a jealousy part because it’s cool. When we put it together it was really Tony [Ponturo] and myself, nobody knew because we were afraid the word would get out that we were interested. You know how the word leaks. That day after I left Hendrick, somehow somebody said something, ESPN reported it that afternoon that we had broke that deal with Hendrick. Didn’t say who we’re going with, because we hadn’t done it yet. Budweiser guy called me that night and said, ‘You can’t do that! You can’t take my race car driver!’ I said ‘It’s done! You’ve got a problem, you talk to the guy whose name is on the building.’”
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In essence, he went behind Budweiser’s back to ink the deal. Though he and all parties involved tried to keep things hushed up, it eventually leaked out. Of course, the brand was furious, but Uline chose to stand his ground. Since then, Dale Earnhardt Jr and the #8 Budweiser car have become a truly iconic partnership. They have been together from 1999 all the way until 2007, when they were at Dale Earnhardt Inc.
Sadly, all good things had to come to an end, especially when he moved to Hendrick Motorsports in 2008. Budweiser could not follow him there, and had to remain with DEI, and an iconic partnership was broken. Now, after nearly 25 years, the partnership will be back for the South Carolina 400 Late Model race.