The National Football League in recent years has expanded its efforts to reach viewers online by partnering with social media sites like Twitter Inc (NYSE: TWTR) and YouTube to produce online content that will appeal to a range of fans. While the NFL used to target partnerships solely based on how lucrative the deal would be, its latest partnership with Snapchat appears to be more strategic. The league is hoping to appeal to the younger generation by connecting with them in ways they are familiar with.

The NFL is planning to continue using Snapchat's Live Stories each week to display highlights from games as well as fan experiences. The first story did not include any advertisements, but the league is expected to weave content from its sponsors into its Snapchat videos in the weeks to come. NFL Director of Digital Media Business Development Blake Stuchin has said that ad revenue from Snapchat content will be shared between the league and Snapchat as the ad space is being sold by both organizations.

It remains to be seen whether or not the Snapchat partnership will rope a younger generation into becoming football fans. The NFL's struggle with bad press and low approval ratings has been a worry for its advertisers, as it could see football becoming less popular with millennials, a generation that has been sensitive to social issues. Official data showing how many people viewed last week's NFL Snapchat content hasn't been made available, by Stuchin has said that "millions of people" viewed the clip.