Hasta La Creative!

A new campaign from Commonwealth//McCann, Detroit for Chevrolet is allowing fans to be a part of Manchester United’s new shirt reveal.

Through a digital experience at www.chevroletfc.com “fans can be among the first to sign up and virtually wear the new shirt via their social channels.” A 60-second video stokes Manchester pride by following the history of the Manchester United shirt from the early 20th century to present day. Fans march down the street singing the “Glory, Glory, Man United” anthem. As each generation takes off their Manchester United shirt, a new group emerges, progressing in time to the modern day as the crowd makes their way to Old Trafford Stadium. Upon arrival they are joined by stars Wayne Rooney, Juan Mata, Robin van Persie and David De Gea wearing the new Chevrolet-branded jersey. Several Manchester United legends are also hidden in the crowd throughout the spot. “The History of the Manchester United Shirt” will run on both broadcast and digital channels. The effort marks the launch of Commonwealth//McCann, Detroit’s “What Do You #PlayFor?” campaign, celebrating Manchester United and soccer for Chevrolet. Stick around for credits after the jump. (more…)

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ICYMI (and the ratings tell us that very few did), Tim Howard is America’s newest hero with his World Cup-record 16 saves in the game against Belgium, or the highest-rated soccer match in the history of U.S. cable TV.

It was great that our American media lauded him for his bluster, that Twitter provided us with the #ThingsTimHowardCanSave meme, and that our political class played along with the ‘U.S. Secretary of Defense‘ Wikipedia story.

Big brands would love to follow suit.

(more…)

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You may have heard there’s a little soccer game being played today. In honor of that game—USA versus Belgium, for those who have somehow avoided World Cup news (to which I ask, how?)—ESPN on Tuesday unleashed the new “I Believe” spot below.

If you need pumping up before the 4 p.m. kickoff—and shouting “USA! USA! USA!” in the mirror somehow isn’t enough—then checking it out. It has everything: slow-motion shots of players, close-ups of spit and snot and blood, enraged faces, the glory of vistory and the fear of defeat, all to the tune of an epic soundtrack.

To top it off, the in-house team at ESPN ended the spot by bringing back the “I Believe” chant. “The chant has caught fire in bars, fan clubs, public viewing events and social media and has become the unifying narrative for this U.S. World Cup journey,” said Seth Ader, senior director of sports marketing for ESPN.

Oh, and now that you’re pumped up and practically ready to explode, let’s put things in perspective: FiveThirtyEight says the USA has a 0.6 percent chance of winning the World Cup. Underdogs!

With the US-Germany World Cup showdown getting underway in a matter of minutes, we figure it’s rather timely to mention the man above, who’s going by the name of “Teddy Goalsevelt” but is actually one Mike D’Amico, an ACD at Chicago-based, WPP-owned agency, Cavalry. Those who watched the US-Portugal stunner on Sunday may have seen D’Amico hamming it up as his Teddy Roosevelt character and rallying U.S. soccer fans on the telly (he even joined in on a pic with Super Bowl XLVIII MVP/Seahawks linebacker Malcolm Smith earlier in the week according to Deadspin commenters). Now, the very optimistic D’Amico, who’s also president of the Chicago chapter of US soccer fanatics the American Outlaws, wants to continue in his efforts as the USMNT’s unofficial mascot down in Brazil should team USA (fingers crossed) make it to the knockout round.

How? Well, with the aid of his cohorts at Cavalry (who count clients including Coors Light), Mr. D’Amico has launched a GoFundMe site asking for fan help to keep him and his character in Brazil through the tournament…or as far as the US goes, we imagine. We’ll see what transpires in the next couple of hours, but thus far, D’Amico and company have raised nearly $2K in less than 24 hours and will match the first $2,500 donated. You can check out the Facebook page here for more info and go to the GoFundMe site to donate here. Now, who’s ready to join in on the by-now-familiar “I believe that we will win!” chant?

Also: here’s a supportive tweet from Listerine (and AOR MRY):

Huge match today. But #USA should like their chances—especially with #TeddyGoalsevelt leading the charge. #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/VSmCR4TMYS

— Listerine Global (@ListerineGlobal) June 26, 2014

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Life is good for Landon Donovan, even though he isn’t playing in the 2014 World Cup—at least according to this new ad for EA Sports.

Instead of participating in the world’s biggest sporting event, the U.S. soccer icon is rolling out of bed late in the morning and chilling in his terry cloth bathrobe, enjoying his morning coffee and playing as himself in the PlayStation 3’s 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil (where, apparently, it’s easier for him to score.)

The spot is a clever, topical and deftly executed take on U.S. coach Jürgen Klinsmann’s controversial decision not to bring Donovan with the national team to Brazil, a move that observers will continue to parse as the tournament unfolds.

Donovan’s self-deprecating performance in the ad is excellent, especially at the end of the clip, when a deadpan song about getting left behind turns out to be less morose than it seems.

But if he does start getting lonely, he can always go hang out with Beckham and Zidane in Adidas’ ad. Nike, though, probably wouldn’t like that much.

AKQA San Francisco created a digital campaign for Visa representing each of the 32 nations who qualified for the 2014 World Cup, with each country given its own representational samba.

For the campaign, AKQA San Francisco and Visa invited musicians from each of the 32 qualified countries to reimagine the Brazilian favorite “Maria Caipirinha” (Samba da Bahia). They then called on filmmakers from each of the countries to “show how their nation celebrates the FIFA World Cup.” This resulted in one of the more unique World Cup campaigns, as we’ve seen a lot of ads celebrating Brazil, but not so many celebrating the other nations at the World Cup. Viewers get a look at each country’s culture, “including regional dance moves, food fans enjoy on match days, the type of gear they wear, even their country’s football rituals and history.” Viewers can jump between different countries’ videos via each country’s flag on the  Visa World Cup site or select the video they want from the YouTube playlist for “The Samba of the World.” We’ve included host country Brazil’s entry above, with Mexico and Cameroon, along with credits, after the jump. continued…

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With the World Cup kicking off today in Brazil, W+K Amsterdam has a new campaign for EA Sport’s 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil (out now on PS3 and Xbox360), aimed to “appeal to every gamer, and to every American with a star-spangled heart.”

The campaign calls on viewers to be “The next American hero” in a 75-second online spot as Team U.S.A. faces the “Group of Death” in Brazil. “The Next American Hero,” which also appears in 15 and 30-second online advertisement iterations, features a “team of soccer heroes representing a cross-section of American society” — such as an  astronaut, cowboy, tech entrepreneur and cheerleader — take the field for the US. Set to the song “Real American,” the spot is built around the idea that with 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil, the fate of the US soccer team is in your hands. And odds are they’ve got a better chance at advancing past group stage than the real team. We’ve got credits following the jump. continued…

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Just in time for today’s World Cup opener between Brazil and Croatia, Samsung, Psyop and Cheil have finally unveiled the first episode of “The Match,” the final installment in its ongoing sci-fi saga touting the Galaxy S5 that features the world’s best soccer players including Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi taking on an alien invasion.

Now that we’ve caught a glimpse of the alien overlord leading the extraterrestrial charge in the previous “Training” installment, it’s time to officially do battle on the pitch in this ambitious effort, which kicked off late last year via a series of teaser clips. With all the feel of a feature film cut condensed into mere minutes, the ongoing campaign can only fan a World Cup fan’s flame and has us anticipating episode two, which is coming soon. Bring it. Credits after the jump. continued…

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Miami stumbled in Game 3 of the NBA Finals, but a Native American tribe turned up the heat. The Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation of California ran a 60-second spot protesting the Washington Redskins nickname during Tuesday’s game—a cutdown of the two-minute version below, which broke online just before the Super Bowl.

In the spot, a narrator lists many of the ways Native Americans describe themselves. These include “proud,” “forgotten,” “Indian,” “indomitable,” “survivor” and “patriot.” In the end, we’re told, “Native Americans call themselves many things. The one thing they don’t …” and a shot of the Redskins helmet fills the screen.

The commercial aired Tuesday in Chicago, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York, Sacramento, San Francisco and, of course, Washington, D.C. The tribe ran the same spot in Miami during Game 2 on Sunday.

Last year, the Oneida Nation produced a series of pointed, high-profile radio ads on the subject, and the timing of the Yocha Dehe Wintun TV buy, against the backdrop of the Donald Sterling racism scandal, adds significant fuel to the fire.

You know what else Native Americans are? Media savvy, and skillful at playing the PR game. Redskins owner Dan Snyder, who famously told USA Today he’d never change the name—”NEVER. You can use caps”—looks more tone-deaf, mean-spirited and, in the eyes of some, flat-out racist the longer he holds the line. A Redskins rep declined to comment for this post, but Snyder has steadfastly maintained the name is not offensive but a badge of honor, and respectful of Native Americans.

Even if that’s what Snyder and many die-hard fans truly believe, bad feelings will fester the longer this drags on. With each NFL season, we’ll get more parking-lot protests at Redskins games, more commentators parsing the controversy on halftime shows and more indignant sports columnists who refer to the club as the R*dskins or “The Washington Football Team.”

Ultimately, Snyder will be remembered as the villain, a guy who fumbled an opportunity to stand up for change and perhaps ignite the passions of a whole new generation—a legacy he could have been proud of.

With only two days until the 2014 World Cup kicks off in Brazil, ESPN has released a revamped version of their “I Believe” spot (which we covered back in April) as a send off to the U.S. team.

The new spot, created in-house, augments the crowd chants of “I believe that we will win” from the original with celebrities — such as Kevin Costner, Ice Cube, Whoopi Goldberg, Jon Hamm, Jimmy Kimmel, and Andrew McCutchen — slowly working their way through the line. Unfortunately, the approach doesn’t really add any life to the blase anthem. If you’re a big fan of the team, you’re already excited for the World Cup to start. If not, ESPN’s latest spot won’t really do anything to entice you.

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