Honda Joins Twitch Rivals as First-Ever Exclusive Automotive Partner

By Brian K. Neal

Honda has officially partnered with Twitch Rivals as its first-ever exclusive automotive partner, aiming to strengthen its presence in the gaming and esports arenas. This strategic move is designed to connect Honda with gamers at all levels, especially targeting Twitch’s expanding young adult audience.

The partnership comes at a critical time for Twitch, which has faced challenges in maintaining sponsorships amid a turbulent period for the gaming industry. Earlier this year, Twitch experienced significant layoffs, with 500 employees affected in January.

A key feature of the Honda Twitch Rivals partnership is the “Chat’s Civic Mods” interactive segment. Launching on July 18, this segment will be featured in multiple episodes on Twitch. During each episode, the Twitch Rivals fan community will have the chance to digitally customize a new 2025 Civic hybrid sedan through chat polls. This initiative coincides with the recent arrival of the 2025 Civic hybrid at Honda dealerships.

The culmination of these crowdsourced customizations will be unveiled at TwitchCon 2024 in San Diego, taking place from September 20 to September 22. The final custom-designed Civic hybrid sedan will be given away to one fortunate Twitch Community member during the TwitchCon weekend.

“Honda joining Twitch Rivals as the first-ever and exclusive automotive partner is an important next step in our growing relationship with the gaming community that kicked off more than 10 years ago,” said Megan Amic, manager of media strategy at American Honda Motor Co. “Honda’s new expanded partnership with Twitch Rivals will introduce our fun new fuel-efficient gateway vehicles, like the new 2025 Honda Civic hybrid, to GenZennial gaming fans.”

Lou Garate, Amazon Ads head of properties, added, “We are pleased to welcome Honda as our exclusive automotive partner of Twitch Rivals. This partnership will enable Honda to support creators and connect with the passionate Twitch Rivals community to deliver memorable and personalized moments. The partnership also positions Honda to reach the millions of people who come together on Twitch to connect, engage, and create live entertainment experiences together.”

The partnership includes several custom, in-stream Honda integrations throughout the season. Highlights include:

• Charged Up Chat: Featuring top comments from the Twitch community.
• Channel Skins: Displaying Honda vehicle messaging.
• In-Stream Chatbot Interaction: Fans can learn more about Honda with the command !honda.
• Chat Plays Games: Honda-branded Maze and Memory interstitial games that allow the chat community to make collaborative decisions.

Honda’s youth initiatives in gaming and esports have significantly contributed to the success of the Honda Civic. Since entering the video gaming space over a decade ago, Honda has partnered with notable gaming franchises such as Forza, Guitar Hero Live, and Hearthstone Team Brawl. In 2019, Honda expanded its gaming footprint by establishing a presence in esports with Team Liquid (now Team Liquid Honda in the LCS) and initiating a growing relationship with Twitch. Approximately 70% of Twitch’s community is aged between 18-34, aligning well with Honda’s gaming strategy.

Aligned with these gaming initiatives, the 11th-generation Civic serves as a gateway to the Honda brand, appealing to Gen Z buyers, first-time new car buyers, and multicultural customers.

While Honda has been a Twitch sponsor since 2019, this marks its inaugural year as the exclusive automotive partner for Twitch Rivals.