Halloween is here, and we’re diving into insights from the candy brands filling the aisles (and trick-or-treaters’ bags) this spooky season! As sweets take center stage, here’s a snapshot of the sponsorship landscape for these tasty delights. 

There are more than 85 brands buying sponsorship or media in the candy, baked goods and desserts category across US major pro sports, with brands averaging two sponsorships each.

Snickers tops the list as the category’s most active brand in the last 12 months. The brand partners with 23 different pro sports franchises, including 21 NFL teams—the Kansas City Chiefs and Las Vegas Raiders among them. Earlier this month, Snickers made headlines worldwide when Saudi Arabian soccer team Al Nassr (Cristiano Ronaldo’s club) named the brand its Official Chocolate Partner, with its logo featured on the sleeve of the team’s training kit. Dippin’ Dots follows in second place with 12 sponsorships, partnering with the Detroit Tigers, Detroit Lions, and Memphis Grizzlies. Tied for third with six deals each are M&M’s and Crumbl, both of which partner with the Minnesota Twins.

The candy, baked goods and desserts category saw 1M in total engagement across 235 posts in the last year, 85% of which was driven by Snickers social campaigns. The brand also scored the category’s three most engaging posts: a co-branded TikTok post with the NFL took the #1 spot with more than 100K impressions, followed by co-branded Instagram and TikTok posts with the Buffalo Bills and the Los Angeles Chargers, respectively. 

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