Category: FIFA World Cup

Adidas And Manchester United Announce Official Partnership

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Adidas and Manchester United today announced an Official Partnership, bringing together two of the leading brands in football. Starting with the 2015/2016 season, adidas will become the global Technical Sponsor and Official Licensing Partner of Manchester United for ten years.

“We are excited to team up with Manchester United, one of the most successful and most loved football clubs globally. Our new partnership with Manchester United clearly underlines our leadership in football and will help us to further strengthen our position in key markets around the world. At the same time, this collaboration marks a milestone for us when it comes to merchandising potential. We expect total sales to reach 1.5 billion GBP during the duration of our partnership.” HERBERT HAINER, ADIDAS GROUP CEO

As part of the agreement, adidas will supply product to Manchester United and outfit all of the club’s teams. In addition, adidas will have the exclusive right to distribute dual-branded merchandising products worldwide.

Manchester United is one of the most popular and successful sports teams in the world. Through its 137-year heritage, Manchester United has won 62 trophies, enabling the club to develop the world’s leading sports brand and a global community of 659 million followers. The club has played 33 exhibition games in countries such as China, Japan and the United States in the last five years and all the club’s Premier League games since 1997/1998 have been sold out.

Manchester United joins the impressive roster of adidas football partners, including some of the world’s top clubs such as Real Madrid, FC Bayern Munich, Chelsea FC, AC Milan, Flamengo and – also starting with the 2015/2016 season – Juventus.

adidas is the outfitter of yesterday’s two finalists in the 2014 FIFA World Cup™, World Champion Germany and runner-up Argentina, and is also the partner of FIFA’s adidas Golden Ball winner Leo Messi, adidas Golden Boot winner James Rodriguez, and adidas Golden Glove winner Manuel Neuer.

As global leader in football, adidas is also the Official Partner of the most important football tournaments in the world, such as the FIFA World Cup™, the FIFA Confederations Cup, the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Europa League and the UEFA European Championships. Some of the world’s best players on the adidas roster are Leo Messi, Gareth Bale, Thomas Müller, Arjen Robben, James Rodriguez, Toni Kroos, Karim Benzema, Philipp Lahm and Bastian Schweinsteiger.

Sony to engage in Group-wide 4K, entertainment, network service, and CSR initiatives leading towards the 2014 FIFA World Cup

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Sony Corporation , an official FIFA partner, today announced that it will further accelerate strategic initiatives that leverage the strengths of all Sony Group companies and its partnership with FIFA.

For the 2014 FIFA World Cup BrazilTM which is due to begin on June 12, 2014 (local time), Sony is focusing on the areas of “4K,” “entertainment,” “network services,” and “CSR,” with key initiatives in each category outlined below.

“At Sony, we strive to empower our consumers with complete, end-to-end entertainment experiences that will complement the best of their lives – whether at home, at work, or even on-the-go,” said Yasushi Asaoka, President and Managing Director of Sony Philippines. “In line with this commitment, we are proud to bring our best-in-class technology and devices to the highly anticipated FIFA World Cup 2014 and ensure that fans around the world enjoy this event at its best whether at home on their Bravia, or while on-the-go with their Xperia tablets and smartphones.”

■4K

 Sony is bringing its renowned, advanced technological capabilities and high value-added products to this tournament, where it will demonstrate its strengths in providing consistent solutions that span the entire 4K process — from filming and production, through to the viewing experience. In collaboration with FIFA, Sony is also seeking to expand the range of opportunities for viewers to experience 4K.

  •  Filming and joint production:

FIFA will produce the Official FIFA 4K Film, packed with highlights of the best action from the tournament. FIFA will film one match from the round of 16, one quarter-final and the final using Sony’s professional 4K recording equipment. Sony will be providing extensive technical support to FIFA, and has developed a dedicated 4K live production system to be used at the tournament.

  •  The viewing experience:

Prior to the completion of the Official Film, Sony will offer its customers the opportunity to view promotional trailers of the Official Film on Sony 4K-compatible BRAVIATM LCD TVs, featuring action from selected matches, all in stunning 4K/60P resolution. Visitors to stadiums and Official FIFA Fan Fest events in Brazil will be able to enjoy the promotional trailers of the Official Film at any one of the ten commercial display booths Sony will be setting up at these venues, while customers around the world will also be able to engage in this 4K experience at approximately 20,000 Sony showrooms and retail outlets worldwide.

In addition to 4K, Sony will also be supplying FIFA with an extensive range of HD production and broadcast equipment, including approximately 300 cameras. These will be used to film every game of the tournament for global distribution in HD.

■Entertainment　

Sony is also leveraging its range of entertainment assets from across the Sony Group in order to drive the excitement and passion for the tournament through music, both in Brazil and around the world.

  •  The “SuperSong” music contest:

For three months from December 2013, Sony and companies from across the Sony Group held the global “SuperSong” music contest for aspiring songwriters, featuring Ricky Martin. More than 1,600 songs were submitted, and the winning song, “Vida,” was performed by Ricky Martin himself and recorded for the 2014 FIFA World CupTM Official Album.

  •  The official tournament songs:　

Sony Music Entertainment (“SME”) and FIFA announced “We Are One (Ole Ola),” the Official Song of the 2014 FIFA World CupTM, by global music sensation Pitbull, featuring Jennifer Lopez and Brazil’s Claudia Leitte. The song will be performed at the opening ceremony where it is set to further heighten the excitement of the games. (For details please refer to the joint announcement on Jan. 23, 2014.) Similarly, the closing ceremony will feature legendary guitarist Carlos Santana and fellow artists performing the official anthem “Dar um Jeito (We Will Find A Way).”

  •  The tournament Official Album:

The songs above are also included on SME’s “One Love, One Rhythm,” Official Album of the 2014 FIFA World CupTM, featuring a total of 14 songs (on the standard edition). (For details refer to the announcement on Apr. 8, 2014.) The album also features Mika Nakashima and Miliyah Kato and their “Fighter (Tachytelic World Cup Brazil 2014 Remix)”. Of the songs featured on the Official Album, music videos of “We Are One (Ole Ola)” and “Vida” can also be enjoyed in 4K at Sony showrooms and retail outlets worldwide.

■Network services (digital and social)　

In addition to conventional ways of enjoying football, such as watching the games at the stadium or on TV and other media networks, Sony will offer a new, interactive World Cup experience where people can join in the excitement of this tournament through various network services.

  •  The “One Stadium” Portal web site:　

Sony has launched “One Stadium” (http://football.sony.net), a portal website to serve as a global hub for communication on football, that offers an array of projects and content such as access to the aforementioned “SuperSong” contest. Maximizing the possibilities offered by the online community space, Sony is aiming to bring people together across all borders, to share their passions and inspirations through projects including:

  •  The “One Stadium Live” social networking site: Sorts and offers the latest and popular football topics from Twitter etc. for easy reference.
  •  The “Fan Ambassador” reports: Fans representing 11 countries will be stationed in Brazil, ready to upload on-site action.
  • The “UNITED” photo contest: A spin-off photo contest of the world’s largest photographic contest “Sony World Photography Awards,” themed on “football” is scheduled to start the day before the tournament.
  • Further projects include interviews with artists featured on the Official Album, and collaborations with Sony’s social news reader app, “Socialife News”.

  •  Collaboration with “FIFA Interactive World Cup”:　

As an official FIFA partner, Sony is also bringing new ways of enjoying football to the online gaming community through the FIFA Interactive World Cup (“FIWC”), organized by FIFA. Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. (“SCE”) and Electronics Arts Inc. are presenting partners of the FIWC, which is the world’s largest online gaming tournament. FIWC uses PlayStation® as its official game console, and online elimination games are played utilizing the PSN network service on PlayStation®. This tournament is the only one of its kind in FIFA’s event portfolio which gives football fans all over the world the chance to compete in a FIFA World Cup tournament. More than 2.5 million PlayStation® users worldwide participated in last year’s tournament, each competing for the honor of becoming the world champion. The FIWC 2014 has been in progress since October of last year, and the Grand Final will be held in Rio de Janeiro during the actual World Cup tournament.

■ CSR

As part of its corporate social responsibility as a global company, Sony is engaged in various efforts to support children around the world and help shape a better, more sustainable community. Leading toward the tournament, Sony is continuing these efforts through the following initiatives:

  • “Dream Goal 2014” program:

Sony is implementing the two projects below in collaboration with FIFA and streetfootballworld gGmbH to benefit children in a total of 12 countries in Central and South America, including the tournament host country Brazil, together with Africa, and other countries and regions. (For details please refer to the “Dream Goal 2014” site）

  •  “Street Football Stadium”: This project will provide mobile stadiums and educational workshops that aim to build leadership and dialogue skills through football, to more than 14,000 children. The workshops will start with those regularly scheduled to take place during a 46-day event organized by streetfootballworld in Rio de Janeiro, starting June 5th. The stadiums will continue to be used in the field of local education, even after the tournament is over.
  •  “Siyakhona Media Skills”: In partnership with FIFA, this project supports young leaders in 11 countries with media skills training programs using Sony products, while also providing them with the opportunity to share their visual message to the world.

Both projects connect communities in need of support with the global community, through designs and photographs via the “One Stadium” portal site.

  • Public Viewing:

During the tournament period, Sony will jointly host public viewing events with JICA (Japan International Cooperation Agency) in Ivory Coast, one of Africa’s representatives at the tournament. Sony’s equipment will be used to project football matches in hi-definition, while Sony will also be providing its own power supply system to deliver power to areas without electricity, based on its olivine-type lithium-ion iron phosphate rechargeable batteries. Sony engineers will also provide on-site technical support. (For details please refer to the joint announcement on May 28, 2014.) Video reports from this project will be uploaded to the “One Stadium” portal.

■Reference: Other activities

Sony is also supporting the “Flag Bearer” program which invites children (ages 12 to 17) to enter the stadium bearing the FIFA flag at the pre-game ceremonies, as well as the “Fan Photographer” program which provides photographers with access to a designated photo-shooting area within the stadium to photograph the players warming up before the match starts. These programs are being conducted in conjunction with other sales promotion campaigns of Sony Group companies, to provide football fans and customers with the unforgettable experience of standing on the same pitch as their heroes.

Coca-cola Unveils the ‘The Happiness Flag’

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32 countries are represented by their national football team in the 2014 FIFA World Cup TM, yet today, the faces of football fans from 207 countries made it onto the pitch at Arena de Sao Paulo. Ahead of the opening match, Coca-Cola unveiled “The Happiness Flag” – the largest-ever, digitally produced Photomosaic Flag. The Flag is part of the Coca-Cola 2014 FIFA World Cup TM campaign, ‘The World’s Cup’ – launched with the goal of creating the most inclusive FIFA World Cup TM Coca-Cola campaign ever.

Over 200,000 fan images were used for “The Happiness Flag” to recreate a unique design developed by Brazilian street artist Speto in collaboration with Argentinian artist Tec. The flag was digitally-produced by Robert Silvers, the inventor of Photomosaic technology.

“The Happiness Flag” was placed on the pitch ahead of the opening match of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in front of an estimated global audience of over one billion people. Formed of 192 printed nylon fabric panels, the Flag was stitched together to deliver an epic 3,015 square meter piece of art, covering almost the entirety of the playing surface.

Emmanuel Seuge, Vice President Global Alliances & Ventures, The Coca-Cola Company said, “At the start of our campaign for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, ‘The World’s Cup’, we set out to create the most inclusive and participatory FIFA World Cup ever. Through “The Happiness Flag”, we gave fans from all around the world the unprecedented opportunity to be a part of the greatest football stage of all. Football has an incredible power to bridge social, cultural and geographical divides and “The Happiness Flag” is the perfect illustration of this power, creating a shared experience for people.”

Speto, who also created the Coca-Cola 2014 FIFA World Cup TM VIS, was quick to respond to the challenge to create a design for the flag. “When we first briefed Speto, he told us, ‘While Brazil and Argentina have a historic rivalry in football, in art, we are comrades,’” recalls Brad Fields, Coca-Cola Global Licensing Manager, “And that’s what this project is all about: ‘Hilltop’ on a flag’” – in reference to the iconic 1971 Coca-Cola ad featuring a multinational chorus of young people gathering on a hilltop in Italy to sing together.

Producing “The Happiness Flag” was a logistically complex task that required close coordination among multiple players. Once Speto and Tec completed their canvas painting, Coca-Cola sent a digitized version to Robert Silvers.

Over the last few months, Silvers recreated the colorful flag design with fan photos posted to www.happinessflag.com and shipped the finished product, section by section, to Rio de Janeiro, where it was printed.

The digital version of the flag will live on www.happinessflag.com where consumers will be able to see an aerial shot of the flag and hover over the mosaic to explore the photos. Fans who submitted photos will now receive a link to see exactly where they were on the flag – and on the pitch and are encouraged to share their photo using #worldscup.

The Happiness Flag is the latest activation in the largest marketing campaign in the history of The Coca-Cola Company, “ The World’s Cup”, which has been brought to life through a number of key global programs to celebrate the inclusive spirit shared by Coca-Cola, football and the tournament’s host country, Brazil.

Highlights from ‘The World’s Cup’:

The FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour by Coca-Cola traveled an epic 92,000 miles around the world visiting 90 countries and offering over 1 million fans the opportunity to experience the real FIFA World Cup trophy

A series of poignant short films entitled Where Will Happiness Strike Next? – shot during the FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour by Coca-Cola – capture the ability of football to help people triumph over adversity. 13 films have been released to date, clocking in over 15 million views worldwide.

  • A global music anthem for the Coca-Cola 2014 FIFA World Cup campaign ‘The World is Ours’ – by David Correy featuring Monobloco takes inspiration from the sounds and rhythms of Brazil. To date, ‘The World is Ours’ has 32 local versions recorded around the world. Coca-Cola released a refreshed version with the help of American soul-singer, Aloe Blacc. The song, ‘The World is Ours by Aloe Blacc x David Correy’ is featured on the official FIFA World Cup Album, “One Love, One Rhythm”.
  • In a vibrant visual expression of the campaign, a uniquely Brazilian visual identity designed by Sao Paulo-based street-artist Speto has underpinned the campaign and is now visible on packaging, equipment and point-of-sale, to hundreds of thousands of customers in 175 countries around the world.
  • “One World, One Game” – a global television and digital film which tells the stories of four football teams from four different corners of the world who have each overcome challenges through their love of football. The teams’ experience will culminate in Brazil on June 16th when they will have the honor of carrying the national team flags onto the pitch at Germany vs. Portugal.
  • Coca-Cola is leveraging two global digital platforms – a partnership with Quiz Up, a trivia-based game and the fast-growing app for iOS and Android covering 40 topics across the beautiful game and Coca-Cola history. The creation of the Coca-Cola fan album in partnership with Panini has already seen 2.2 million users register for the game, with 146 million stickers traded worldwide.

Joe Tripodi, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer, The Coca-Cola Company, said of the campaign, “We set out on a journey to deliver the largest and most inclusive marketing program in our history. Through ‘The World’s Cup’ we brought Brazil to the world and now, wherever you live, whoever you support, Coca-Cola is looking forward to welcoming you to Brazil to celebrate with the host country for the
2014 FIFA World Cup.”

During the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Coca-Cola Jouney will act as a hub for all ‘ The World’s Cup’ campaign content, providing a single destination for media and consumers to experience the campaign and highlights from the brand during the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

The Coca-Cola Company has had a long-standing relationship with FIFA since 1974 and has been an official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup since 1978. Coca-Cola has had stadium advertising at every FIFA World Cup since 1950 and is a long-time supporter of football at all levels.

McDonald’s Kicks-Off FIFA World Cup With New, Augmented Reality Trick-Shot App

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Customers around the globe will soon notice something different at McDonald’s (NYSE: MCD). Starting next Monday, the brand will change the look of its iconic red French fry packaging globally with bold, new artwork to celebrate the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Brasil. In addition, the new fry boxes will be the key to “unlocking” a new Augmented Reality (AR) app that will reward customers with an engaging, virtual trick-shot challenge.

“This is the first time in brand history we’re changing the packaging design of one of our customers’ most favourite menu items on a global scale, and what better reason than to share in the excitement of one of the most prestigious sporting events in the world,” said Steve Easterbrook, Senior Executive Vice President and Global Chief Brand Officer of McDonald’s. “This is about bringing fun, innovative programming to our customers and celebrating our shared love of futbol. We’re excited to be able to do that through an engaging, interactive mobile experience, and of course with our World-Famous Fries.”

The redesign will treat customers and futbol fans with an exclusive collection of original street art that reflects the beauty and passion of the game of futbol. Twelve artists from around the world were chosen to create the special new designs, which will canvas McDonald’s Medium and Large fry boxes in the majority of company-owned and franchised restaurants worldwide and trigger the downloadable app, entitled “McDonald’s GOL!”

Customers can download the app and begin play as soon as they have their specially-designed fry box in-hand. It’s as easy as holding the screen of their mobile device up to the front of the box. As the device recognizes the artwork, a futbol pitch will appear in an AR scene on the screen, with the fry box as the goal and other built-in objects as obstacles. The idea is to “kick” the ball with the flick of a finger and divert or use obstacles to get the ball into the goal.

Created for McDonald’s in collaboration with Qualcomm Connected Experiences, Inc. and Trigger, the app brings a truly new mobile play experience to customers using the Qualcomm Vuforia mobile vision platform. This app showcases the Vuforia platform’s new cutting-edge Smart Terrain feature, representing a technology breakthrough that allows users to build their own play spaces using everyday objects.

“Our digital vision at McDonald’s is to bring an entirely new level of everyday convenience and fun to the world, and our Augmented Reality app is just one example of how we are bringing fun to our customers’ lives,” said Atif Rafiq, McDonald’s Chief Digital Officer. “We are very excited about the numerous opportunities in front of us to bring even more innovative digital experiences to our customers in ways only McDonald’s can do.”

“McDonald’s GOL!” will be compatible with most Android and Apple mobile devices and will be available for download in the Google Play store and Apple App Store starting on May 26. Instructions for download will be available on the back of each specially designed fry box or can be found on gol.mcd.com. The new fry boxes will be available throughout the duration of the 2014 FIFA World Cup while supplies last.

The artists showcased on the specially-designed fry boxes include:

  • Australia: David Spencer, Artwork Title – ‘The Perfect Kick’
  • Brazil: Eduardo Kobra, Artwork Title – ‘O mundo unido pelo futebol’ (translation: ‘The world united by football’)
  • Canada: Mügluc, Artwork Title – ‘Unite Together’
  • China: Hua Tunan, Artwork Title – ‘World of Victory’
  • England: Ben Mosley, Artwork Title – ‘Fans of the World’
  • France: Skwak, Artwork Title – ‘The Maniac Football Party’
  • Germany: Roman Klonek, Artwork Title – ‘Freaky Fan Club’
  • Japan: Doppel, Artwork Title – ‘Kick the One’
  • Russia: Egor Koshelev, Artwork Title – ‘The Perfect Goal’
  • South Africa: Adele Bantjes, Artwork Title – ‘Heart of the Game’
  • Spain: Martin Satí, Artwork Title – ‘Flamenco Number One’
  • USA: Tes One, Artwork Title – ‘Formations’

A number of marketing and communication activities are planned to support this program. This includes the online release today of a lively video that features real-life futbol trick-shot talent from around the world.

McDonald’s has been an Official Sponsor and the Official Restaurant of FIFA World Cup for 20 years. Other activities planned to bring the excitement of the Tournament to life worldwide include:

  • McDonald’s Player Escort Program

McDonald’s will provide 1,408 children (ages 6-10) from 69 countries worldwide a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience the thrill of the Tournament and walk hand-in-hand onto the pitch with their futbol heroes. This marks the largest number of countries participating in the program since McDonald’s first began sponsoring it in 2002.

  • McDonald’s Ultimate FIFA World Cup Football Fan

McDonald’s will bring together some of the most passionate fans from around the world with the “ultimate” trip to the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Customers selected as a McDonald’s Ultimate FIFA World Cup Futbol Fan will have the opportunity to attend matches, have their photo taken with the FIFA World Cup Trophy, have VIP treatment at exclusive parties during Tournament, and more. Each market determines the criteria and selection process for their selected fans.

More detailed information on our sponsorship and activation programs, including fact sheets and visuals, can be found by visiting our online media newsroom.

Coca-Cola Launches “The World’s Cup”

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The largest marketing program in the history of The Coca-Cola Company invites the world to celebrate football as a force for social good. Through “The World’s Cup” campaign, Coca-Cola will create unrivalled access, participation, empowerment and conversation with the goal of delivering the most accessible and inclusive FIFA World Cup ever. “The World’s Cup” will be brought to life through a number of key elements:

  • “One World, One Game” television and digital film
  • “Where Will Happiness Strike Next” documentary-style short films
  • The official music anthem for the Coca-Cola 2014 FIFA World Cup campaign
  • The Happiness Flag – the largest photomosaic ever created featuring fan faces and messages
  • FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour by Coca-Cola
  • A uniquely Brazilian visual identity

“Just as Brasil is everyone’s country and Coca-Cola is everyone’s drink, the FIFA World Cup is everyone’s cup,” said Joseph Tripodi, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer, The Coca-Cola Company, about the brand’s new campaign for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. “Through “The World’s Cup”, Coca-Cola wants to celebrate real people playing football, demonstrating how the game is a force for a more inclusive and connected world.”

The “One World, One Game” television and digital film goes live across the globe today and is the brand’s invitation to the world to join “The World’s Cup”. The film, created in partnership with Wieden + Kennedy Sao Paulo, brings to life the stories of four football teams from four different corners of the world who have each overcome life’s challenges through their love of the game. The film sees the teams share their stories of the happiness that football brings them as Coca-Cola surprises each team with invitations to Rio de Janeiro, to see the preparations for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The teams’ experience will culminate in attending the tournament this summer, where they will have the honor of carrying the national team flags onto the pitch at Germany vs. Portugal on June 16th.

In a series of poignant, documentary-style, short films entitled Where Will Happiness Strike Next captured during stops along the FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour, Coca-Cola will share stories of passionate football fans that are using the game to help them triumph over adversity, in turn inspiring others to use the power of football to overcome difficulties. At each film’s climax, the stars are surprised by Coca-Cola and a special viewing of the FIFA World Cup Trophy.

“Coca-Cola prides itself on celebrating the power of football and the ability of the sport to bring the world together. Football is for everyone, regardless of geographical and social boundaries, that’s why this year we are launching “The World’s Cup”.” added Tripodi.

‘The World Is Ours’ is the official music anthem for the Coca-Cola 2014 FIFA World Cup campaign featuring vocals from Brazilian born David Correy and sounds from Monobloco – a Brazilian street band. As Correy travelled across the globe championing the song, local artists were encouraged to put their own spin on the track, giving it a truly global flavor.

In an unprecedented move, Coca-Cola is giving fans from across the globe the chance to be part of the largest flag mosaic ever created and show the power of football to bring people from different backgrounds and beliefs together. The Happiness Flag – constructed from photos and tweets submitted by fans from around the world – will be seen on-pitch prior to the Opening Match of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Sao Paulo on June 12th.

Underpinning the entire campaign is the longest ever FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour by Coca-Cola. Starting in September 2013 Coca-Cola has taken the FIFA World Cup Trophy on a journey spanning more than 92,000 miles and visiting 90 countries to encapsulate the true spirit of the campaign – that the FIFA World Cup really is “The World’s Cup”.

The visual identity for “The World’s Cup” campaign will be featured on all brand communication during the tournament and represents happiness, togetherness and celebration. For the first time, the design was created in collaboration with a street artist, employing the unique style and talent of Brazilian artist Speto. It features the color and characteristic designs of Brazilian street art with the faces of four young people from Brazil reproduced in Speto’s signature graphic style.

The Coca-Cola Company has had a long-standing relationship with FIFA since 1974 and has been an official sponsor of the FIFA World Cup since 1978. Coca-Cola has had stadium advertising at every FIFA World Cup since 1950 and is a long-time supporter of football at all levels.