Mid June sees Southampton roll out an online cartoon series to spearhead the launch of its new 2017/18 season Under Armour kit.
Ahead of the 17 June official unveiling of the new home and away kits, Southampton FC created an animated short series to generate buzz around the launch, create buzz and drive pre-order sales.
The animation features a squad of current stars (including Ryan Bertrand, Fraser Forster, Manolo Gabbiadini and Maya Yoshida) and also a cameo from club legend Matt Le Tissier (who also add their voiceovers to the film) and the plot sees the players rescue the stolen kit design.
The cartoon comes in two episodes and the first debuted on the club’s YouTube channel on 15 June.
The narrative opens with Bertrand arriving at a secret Saints training base beneath St Mary’s Stadium where keeper Forster trains to attain ‘superhero status’, Yoshida practices defeating a ‘Liverpool attack sequence’ and Italian striker Gabbiadini performs ‘Mama Mia’.
As the footballers are called to ‘the lab’ for the new kit unveiling by ‘head in the sky’ Hugo Scheckter, it is revealed that the new strip has been stolen.
The spot was also pushed across the club’s other channels such as its Twitter feed.
They never stop. #MadeForHeroes #saintsfc pic.twitter.com/dMuHIc7I2h
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) June 15, 2017
and Facebook.
The second part was released 24 hours later
and marked the start of the pre-ordering phase which saw the club tactically drives fans to visit its web purchasing platform at http://store.saintsfc.co.uk to pre-order.
Read more about the reveal of #SaintsFC's 2017/18 kits with @UnderArmourUK: https://t.co/Q5JGLFDIRL
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) June 17, 2017
There was further amplification across Under Armour’s UK channels.
The home and away kits themselves were unveiled on 17 June.
Read more about the reveal of #SaintsFC's 2017/18 kits with @UnderArmourUK: https://t.co/Q5JGLFDIRL
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) June 17, 2017
Our 2017/18 #SaintsFC away kit by @UnderArmourUK!
Visit https://t.co/k2mS7hdwmN to pre-order yours: https://t.co/sJFw6LfMql
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) June 17, 2017
Additional campaign assets, linked by the #MadeForHeroes hashtag, ran across all of its channels: from Instagram,
to Snapchat filters.
Fan of #SaintsFC's new 2017/18 @UnderArmourUK kits? Don't forget to check out our special @Snapchat filter! #MadeForHeroes pic.twitter.com/6WkI5iQi1m
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) June 17, 2017
There was also a signed shirt competition strand of the launch campaign.
Want to win a new #SaintsFC home shirt signed by the players?
Enter our #MadeForHeroes quiz to be in with a shot: https://t.co/sHrA0h1cqS
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) June 17, 2017
The design of the kits themselves is inspired by the shirts worn by the club during the Keegan/Channon era during the 1980 to 1983, while the animated shorts are designed in the style of early 80s cartoon classics such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and The Real Ghostbusters.
This era in the club’s history was also relived with content pieces across the clubs digital and social channels.
Can you name the #SaintsFC team from the first time they wore a kit with a single white stripe? https://t.co/qDe8nwQuWh
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) June 17, 2017
Take a trip down memory lane and watch some of the best #SaintsFC goals from the 1980s: pic.twitter.com/XgrkAYNhSJ
— Southampton FC (@SouthamptonFC) June 17, 2017
“We wanted to combine the innovative nature of our partnership with Under Armour with a tongue-in-cheek nod to the match day heroics of our first team squad,” said Southampton FC commercial director David Thomas.
“We are always proud to present the latest edition of the kit, and we think the eye-catching retro design will capture the imaginations of fans young and old.”
Under Armour’s European vice president and managing director, Chris Bate adds: “The bold designs of both kits, as well as the innovative creative campaign, will create impact on and off the field. Re-imagining some of the club’s top athletes truly matches the performance technology behind the kit, and we believe it will excite fans just as much as the team’s prospects for the upcoming Premier League season.”
Activative Comment:
This brilliant animation manages to be both retro and contemporary: the cartoon style is old school, but does the creative’s Liverpool attack reference a nod to the recent Virgil van Dijk transfer saga?
Clearly we are not alone in our admiration of the activation.
After all, on the day it launched it trended on Twitter across the UK.
It also notched up an impressive 2.3m Facebook views (plus a further 30,000 on YouTube) in its first 48 hours
Matching the campaign’s creative style to the era of the kit design inspiration ensures a rounded, authentic feel.
Impressive work!
Links:
Southampton FC
http://www.southamptonfc.com
http://www.twitter.com/southamptonfc
http://www.facebook.com/southamptonfc
http://www.instagram.com/southamptonfc
https://www.youtube.com/user/theofficialsaints
Under Armour
https://www.facebook.com/UnderArmourUK/
https://www.youtube.com/user/UnderArmourUK
https://twitter.com/UnderArmourUK
https://www.instagram.com/underarmouruk/
