NYCFC and Mastercard know how important small business is to the community and that COVID-19 posed horrific challenges to businesses everywhere, especially in New York City. NYCFC and Mastercard created the ‘City Assist’ contest to uplift small businesses and provide an opportunity for one business to become the first-ever Official Small Business of NYCFC.

The winning business was to receive a full partnership package with NYCFC, and the Mastercard Digital Doors toolkit. NYCFC and Mastercard would also provide resources to help amplify this small business’ brand to millions of new consumers and elevate their digital presence. Unbeknownst to them, NYCFC and Mastercard were also planning to place the logo of this small business on the sleeve of the First Team jersey. Marking the first time a small business would have branding on uniform of an MLS team

Our strategy was to become the next viral moment and break through the noise as most sports teams and brands were playing into the small business angle. We would use our team of in-house videographers, photographers and editors to tell the story of this small business.

After 6 weeks of promotion, there was a 2-week judging period using representatives from both NYCFC and Mastercard who reviewed over 50 applications. The judging panel selected 3 finalists for 'live' pitches, conducted via Microsoft Teams. The partnership with Sol Cacao was announced on May 10th and the sleeve patch was debuted on May 22nd. NYCFC competed in and won the Audi MLS Cup on December 11th, 2021, where the jerseys still featured Sol Cacao.

The outcome was a priceless amount of engagement, equaling 31.9 million impressions on social throughout the 2021 season and 15.6 million video views.