BELLEVUE, Wash.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

This coming football season, the competition won't just be on the field. T-Mobile (NASDAQ: TMUS) will transform Friday night lights forever for one deserving small town — just like it’s done for rural wireless service — with a grand prize football field technology makeover called . The competition, which kicks off today, is open to the thousands of small towns across the country that live and breathe high school football.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here:

With ‘Friday Night 5G Lights,’ the Un-carrier, with help from Gronk, is celebrating its historic rollout in rural America, providing a platform for small-town America to showcase its community spirit and compete for a game-changing upgrade. In addition to the $2 million grand prize, T-Mobile is awarding $25,000 to 16 finalists and giving $5,000 to 300 high schools throughout the competition's entry period to support football programs nationwide. (Graphic: Business Wire)

T-Mobile is launching Friday Night 5G Lights to bring awareness to the massive investments the company’s made in rural America — nearly 500,000 square miles of new 5G coverage and hundreds of new stores — while celebrating the community spirit that makes small-town America so special. Nothing brings that spirit out quite like high school football.

“Growing up in West Texas, I'm no stranger to Friday night lights. I’ve always loved how those bright stadium lights bring families together from all corners of the community to cheer on and support their beloved high school,” said Jon Freier, President, T-Mobile Consumer Group. “It's why I'm so excited to provide a platform to recognize and highlight small towns from all over the country.”

One of the towns that represents all that’s great about Friday night lights is Hickory, North Carolina, located an hour outside Charlotte, and the proud . The defending NCHSAA 3A champion Red Tornadoes represent a rich football tradition in Hickory that includes “The Untouchables,” the 1964 state champions that not only went undefeated but didn’t allow a single point all season.

It’s that history that inspired T-Mobile to connect four-time Super Bowl champion Rob “Gronk” Gronkowski with the current Red Tornadoes squad to capture video footage and talk about small town football. After serving as hype man for the team and local community and running routes, Gronk sat down with University of Alabama Quarterback Jalen Milroe and Hickory High School Quarterback Brady Stober to talk about what makes high school football in America so special.

“On Friday nights, all the things that divide us go away. On game day, we’re all just one team and one community with a unifying goal to leave everything on the field and be the best we can be,” said Gronk. “We need a lot more Friday nights!”

Friday Night 5G Lights will culminate in an extraordinary $2 million grand prize to upgrade one small town’s pride and joy: its high school football field. The grand prize includes a $100,000 cash grant, a new teched-out scoreboard, 5G network upgrades, the ultimate tailgate party for the whole community, a 5G-powered halftime drone show and a special gift from Gronk: an upgraded weight room from . The 16 finalists will each receive a $25,000 cash grant.

T-Mobile will choose the 16 finalists based on several factors, including compelling stories about why their high school needs the grand prize tech upgrade, potential impact on the school’s football field and how the school has shown school spirit during the application window through social engagement. Ultimately, the school that can break through the noise, best show off its community spirit and passion, and get community members to vote for their school on social media will emerge victorious.

Friday Night 5G Lights will unfold over the high school football season, with the finalists announced in early October and the winner revealed in early December. After entering the contest — see details at — each school/community will be given opportunities over the stretch of the entry period to showcase what makes them special.

For example, in one of those weeks, T-Mobile will offer a free seat cushion via T-Mobile Tuesdays — those unforgiving high school bleachers can be brutal! So, T-Mobile is giving you one of the best seats in the house, just for being a T-Mobile customer. Will an enterprising school perhaps upload a picture to social media from a game with hundreds of seat cushions held high in the air celebrating a touchdown? Or something way better than that!

“We love competition at T-Mobile. We brought it to rural America over three years ago, delivering our best, more expansive 5G wireless service, with extraordinary customer value, and all the perks the Un-carrier is famous for. Now, with Friday Night 5G Lights, we’re going to put these incredible communities under the bright lights and show the nation why they’re so special,” continued Freier.

How to Share Your Story

The playing field for Friday Night 5G Lights is wide open to high schools in U.S. towns with a population of 150,000 or less. To get in the game, school representatives (think administrators, teachers, coaches) can enter to get the ultimate tech makeover for their high school field. Just share your story about why your town’s high school football field deserves an Un-carrier-style upgrade.

Once the 16 finalists are announced in early October, everyone in the country will be able to help pick the grand prize winner by voting for their favorite finalist town via Instagram.

Entries begin today and end Sept. 20, 2024, so get on it. It’s game time, people!

To enter and for official rules, visit .

More Ways to Score

Every high school that enters Friday Night 5G Lights is automatically entered for a chance to win $5,000 in T-Mobile’s “$5K Fridays” weekly sweepstakes. Between Aug. 1 and Sept. 20, T-Mobile will randomly select 50 schools each week — totaling 300 — to win $5,000. Schools, students, PTA members and the entire community can also join the fun by posting their school spirit on Instagram to increase the odds of their high school winning some extra cash for new equipment, sports gear or transportation expenses.

Whether it’s a shot of students posing at a pep rally or customizing your own T-Mobile digital playing card, anyone can rep their community and show off their school spirit. Don’t forget to tag your school’s official Instagram handle, and use the hashtags #Sweepstakes and #FN5GL to ensure each entry is counted. Additional assets, including T-Mobile's digital playing cards, are available to download and share at .

T-Mobile Tuesdays is getting in on the action, too. To help spread the Friday Night 5G Lights excitement, T-Mobile will be hooking Un-carrier customers up with free game-day essentials and treats like:

• BOGO Free Scoops from Baskin-Robbins on Aug. 20
• Free Friday Night 5G Lights seat cushion on Aug. 27

Score these special offers and more from through the .

A Commitment to Small Town America

Friday Night 5G Lights is the latest way T-Mobile is showing its support for small towns. In April 2021, T-Mobile rolled out , a commitment to to all of the country, not just big cities and their suburbs. The goal was to bring needed competition to areas long dominated by AT&T and Verizon.

Now, a little more than three years later, that vision has transformed into reality. As , T-Mobile is now the wireless provider for rural America, delivering impactful benefits like:

• Expanded coverage: Since 2021, T-Mobile has added nearly 25% more 5G coverage — nearly 500,000 square miles — for rural America, now covering over 2 million square miles total nationwide.
• Upgraded infrastructure: The Un-carrier updated 27,000 existing cell towers with 5G and added 12,000 completely new sites in rural America.
• A new choice for internet: T-Mobile introduced much needed competition to the broadband market — one of America's most hated industries — and became the country’s fastest growing home internet provider. Today, is available to over 50 million households nationwide, with millions in small towns and rural areas. And is available nationwide to help organizations of all sizes break free from the hassles of traditional broadband.
• Increased speeds: Since 2021, network upgrades have accelerated download speeds by 4.2x, according to third-party experts at Ookla.
• Retail expansion: T-Mobile has opened nearly 600 stores in small towns and rural communities.
• Hometown Grants: With more than $13 million in funding to 300 towns across 47 states for , the Un-carrier is helping small-town America thrive. Of this, $1 million has been allocated to support small businesses.
• Connected students: , T-Mobile's $10.7 billion initiative offering connectivity to up to 10 million eligible student families across the country, connected nearly 6 million students through $6.4 billion in investments by the end of last year, alongside other education initiatives.
• Coverage Above and Beyond: And, in the future, , a direct-to-cell satellite service, will aim to fill in coverage gaps in even the most remote areas.

These efforts underscore T-Mobile's unwavering commitment to connecting every corner of America, ensuring that no community is left behind.

Learn more about T-Mobile Friday Night 5G Lights by visiting: .

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See 5G device, coverage, & access details at T-Mobile.com. T-Mobile Tuesdays: Limited-time offers; while supplies last. Qualifying plan required. See T-Mobile Tuesdays for details.

Based on analysis by Ookla® of Speedtest Intelligence® data median download speeds comparing H1 2021 to H1 2024. Ookla trademarks used under license and reprinted with permission.

About T-Mobile

T-Mobile US, Inc. (NASDAQ: TMUS) is America’s supercharged Un-carrier, delivering an advanced 4G LTE and transformative nationwide 5G network that will offer reliable connectivity for all. T-Mobile’s customers benefit from its unmatched combination of value and quality, unwavering obsession with offering them the best possible service experience and undisputable drive for disruption that creates competition and innovation in wireless and beyond. Based in Bellevue, Wash., T-Mobile provides services through its subsidiaries and operates its flagship brands, T-Mobile, Metro by T-Mobile and Mint Mobile. For more information please visit:

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