World Cup fever is working its way around our office at the moment thanks to some pretty awesome marketing campaigns, and of course, Shakira’s catchy “Waka Waka”. This year, brands and World Cup sponsors have turned to YouTube to create entertaining content and generate buzz. Here are five of our favorite soccer-inspired stunts to get you going.
1. Write The Future: Pre-kickoff excitement was sparked thanks to Nike’s best ad ever. The 3-minute epic features some of football’s finest and offers a glimpse into their potential futures. Last month, almost one third of all World Cup online buzz was focused around Nike’s mini movie; that’s twice as much exposure as official World Cup sponsor Adidas received. Nike’s video set a new record for most views of a viral video ad, accumulating 7.8 million views in a week. Take that, Tiger. As if that wasn’t enough, they also commissioned artist Diem Cho to create this amazing press kit.
2. Hard Chorus: In the build up to the 2010 World Cup games, Puma took a far more European focus (probably because Americans still insist on calling the sport soccer). Building on the success of their Valentine’s Day ad, the Hard Chorus Contest pitted Italy, France, Germany and the UK’s most musical supporters against each other in a chant-off on their YouTube channel. Viewers were able to make or break singing careers — okay fine, just award bragging rights — by voting for their favorite crooning hooligans.
3. Goooal!: Football, Fútbol, Futebol, Fußball, Soccer… No matter what you call the game, there is only one way to say “goooooal”. Visa has tapped into this multilingual phenomenon by challenging fans to create the world’s longest goal in history. By uploading their own renditions of Andrés Cantor’s iconic shout, supporters can join together in a worldwide cheer. With enough “goals” to last the length of the tournament, there is plenty to watch on the VisaGoFans YouTube page. Keep an eye out for the Golden Flags and you could be chanting at the next World Cup in Brazil 2014.
4. Man-Cave: To promote their UK launch, Best Buy is making dreams come true… man-dreams, that is. Apparently, to experience the World Cup in its full glory all you need is an understanding girlfriend, a sympathetic boss, an amazing TV, and, oh, a man-cave. Luckily, Best Buy is rewarding one lucky football fan with EVERYTHING seen in this video (baby wipes included!). However, there is one essential thing missing. Viewers must leave a comment on the YouTube video guessing what the missing item is to win this “TechTastic Man-Cave”.
5. BudHouse: What happens when you combine the Real World with the World Cup? Budweiser has gone beyond the usual viral video spots, instead creating their own online reality TV series. With 32 (no-doubt crazy) soccer fans from each of the participating countries, viewers will be able to mess with the roommates by awarding points or penalties and ultimately deciding who gets to go to the Final. Don’t worry if reality TV isn’t your thing, you can still show your true colors by visiting the Bud United Facebook page. (See below.)
No matter who you’re rooting for this World Cup, thanks to brands getting behind the game, this year soccer is sure to be bigger than ever.
Tags: Digital Marketing, Online Advertising, Viral Advertising, World Cup, Youtube
