Versus is a coming-of-age story set to the backdrop of a momentous summer lacrosse tournament.

The surface of the narrative features the battle on the field between two co-captains at the helm of the San Diego Bolts, rivals bound by their common goal: to win The Battle for the Best.

The heart of the story, however, reveals the real and relatable intrapersonal battles the teammates face off field, each fighting to find themselves amidst their formative high school years. Versus reflects the cultural truths of teen life, leveraging common tropes from coming-of-age stories to drive the character development: being comfortable with sexual identity, coping with family divorce, carrying the burden of financial stress, maintaining friendships.

As the team competes in the most high stakes tournament on the West coast, the sport teaches the Bolts invaluable lessons that build their confidence, shape their character and ultimately lead them to self-discovery.

Casting was a critical component of bringing Versus to life. We selected a mix of traditional actors (Brandon Larracuente/13 Reasons Why; Camille Hyde/American Vandal) and social media influencers (Claudia Sulewski, 4M followers; Megan Nicole, 8M followers) to elevate the acting credentials of the series while also extending its reach and bringing in highly engaged digital audiences.

The six 22-minute episodes aired in their entirety on Verizon’s Go90, a streaming platform that programs content for a mobile-savvy Gen Z audience. To drive awareness of Versus and tune-in, the first 2 episodes were also distributed on our YouTube channel to over 6 million subscribers. Cutdowns and teaser content were shared across Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter and Tumblr. In total, the series content received over 13.8 million views. 300+ social posts from our social media pages and the cast also generated more than 58 million social impressions.

Versus went beyond entertainment to change teen girls’ perception of and interest in participating in team sports.

According to Nielsen, after watching Versus:

-Girls who had stopped playing sports were 37% more likely to consider joining a sports team.*

-Girls who had never played a sport were 41% more likely to consider joining a team.*

-Girls were more likely to agree that sports teaches leadership skills (+33% increase), increases confidence (+28% increase), and builds friendships (+27%).*

-Among girls who had never played a sport there was a 31% lift in agreement that sports develop long-term life skills.*

The series also positively impacted consumers’ perception of Gatorade. After viewing Versus, 91% of teen girls agreed that Gatorade is a brand that supports girls in sports. 69% agreed prior to watching the series.

*Data sample: 200 teenage girls; 89% have played a sport at some point; 11% have never played a sport.