HBO partners with Major League Baseball to promote Game of Thrones season 7

Here’s something you may not have expected to hear: This summer, at least 19 Major League Baseball teams will promote Game of Thrones season 7 as part of a partnership with HBO, according to Deadline.

We still don’t know when season 7 will premiere, but we know it’ll be in the summer, which is also baseball season. And before you ask, the MLB has no more idea of the premiere date than anyone else. Or if they know, they’re not saying.

What kind of promotions are we talking about? Per Deadline, “they’ll include development of collectible and co-branded merchandise, ticket packages, giveaways, theme nights, and social media events.” The promotions will vary by team. Teams planning to participate at the moment include the Arizona Diamondbacks, Boston Red Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Chicago White Sox, Houston Astros, Los Angeles Dodgers, Kansas City Royals, Miami Marlins, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, Oakland Athletics, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, Seattle Mariners, San Francisco Giants, St. Louis Cardinals, Texas Rangers, Tampa Bay Rays and Washington Nationals. So it’s a nationwide thing.

“We’ve had a longstanding partnership with HBO,” said Noah Garden, the EVP of Business for MLB. (Apparently, HBO Now is powered by MLB’s BAMTech technology platform. Who knew?) The league has done promotional partnerships before — with Disney to promote Star Wars, for example — but according to Garden, this will be “on a much larger scale.”

With filming on Game of Thrones season 7 over or ending, it looks like HBO is looking ahead toward the season itself. Hopefully that means we’ll get more information — and maybe even a teaser trailer — before long.