Gallo Winery’s Amy Lund on bringing wine to the NFL

What does it take to bring a 90-year-old wine company into one of America’s most beer-dominated spaces — professional football? In this episode of The Current Podcast, hosts Damian Fowler and Ilyse Liffreing sit down with Amy Lund, VP of integrated marketing and corporate communications at E. & J. Gallo Winery, to talk about Barefoot’s bold move to become the official wine sponsor of the NFL.

For a category facing headwinds, the question for Gallo was: “How do [we] recruit new consumers … and, more importantly, create a new occasion for them that beer typically dominates?” Lund says. The brand saw an opportunity to create a new experience around a live sport, marketing its Barefoot brand as an unpretentious wine that belongs in places not typically served, such as tailgate parties, in a Solo cup over ice.

Lund unpacks how the partnership came to life — from launching the viral “Bandwagon Box” to tapping celebrities like Simone Biles and Donna Kelce. She explains how the campaign helped recruit more than 4.5 million new customers and drive a 7% lift in retail velocity.

Lund also shares how her background across supply chain, finance and brand-building helps shape her marketing savvy — and why culture-led marketing only works when it’s backed by strong positioning and smart data strategy.