Four days ahead of kick-off, MLS launched the latest version of its ongoing ‘Our Soccer’ brand campaign to drive hype around the 2019 season.
Launched on 12 February, the creative sits at the intersection of sports, culture and entertainment and is fronted by Latin singer/songwriter Prince Royce and showcases the league’s multicultural make up and appeal.
The campaign, which was produced by the league’s creative agency of record Cornerstone and The Fader, focusing on showcasing the MLS’ multi-cultural North American fanbase.
The work features an anthem that aims to express the unique experience of being an MLS fan and the growth of the soccer movement in North America.
‘Our Soccer’ positions MLS as the world’s most diverse sports league in the world and shines a spotlight on its star-studded, multi-cultural fan base.
The campaign is spearheaded by a series of spots directed by acclaimed filmmaker Clayton Vomero.
‘Our Sound’, is voiced by Prince Royce who wears Inter Miami CF gear (the MLS expansion club co-owned by cultural icon David Beckham) to a party where he watches a game with Grammy-nominated producer and DJ Tokimonsta Tokimonsta who wears a Los Angeles Football Club jersey.
The commercial comes in English, Spanish, and Spanglish (a fusion of English and Spanish) and French-Canadian (for MLS’ fans in Quebec) versions to further engage and reflect the MLS’ multicultural fan base.
The campaign runs across the MLS partner networks – ESPN, FOX Sports, Univision, TSN and TVA Sports – as well as international broadcast partner platforms and the league’s own digital channels.
“The ‘Our Soccer’ campaign captures the unique spirit, confident attitude and diverse environment that embodies MLS,” said David Bruce, MLS VP/Brand and Integrated Marketing.
“It celebrates the MLS supporter culture and illustrates how fans are creating their own rituals and traditions that define the North American version of the global game. The campaign also showcases how cultural influencers view the league as an authentic representation of themselves and a place to more deeply engage with fans.”
“We are extremely proud to continue to evolve the Our Soccer platform for MLS,” added Jon Cohen, co-CEO of Cornerstone and co-founder and co-CEO of The FADER.
“MLS truly marries culture and sport and unites players and people from diverse backgrounds like no other sport in North America.”
The campaign’s PR push includes a Prince Royce quote saying: “I think it’s one of the sports that has the most passion. You see so many cultures, languages – that’s the great thing about music and the great thing about soccer. I’m from New York, where we have two teams, and I moved to Miami, and having a team coming to Miami is super dope. As a fan I think we’re all excited. It’s great to see MLS grow, and for all of these cities to have more sports, more passion, more laughter and more soccer.”
The new season also sees the launch of a new MLS app which was promoted by a ‘Live Your Colors’ campaign.
Comment:
The trend for blending sport with other strands of the entertainment industry continues unchecked: although this star led tactic it doesn’t come without its challenges and pitfalls.
At a late stage in the roll out, MLS pulled one of the ads in the campaign following revelations about musician Sheck Wes following allegations of domestic abuse.
This season’s promotional initiative follows on from 2018’s pre-season hype work – which was also called ‘Our Soccer – and the brand campaign’s 2018 debut was led by a spot featuring Atlanta-based rapper and Atlanta United fan 2 Chainz (see case study).
2 Chainz also appeared live during the MLS 2018 All Star concert.
Headquartered in New York City, MLS now features 27 clubs throughout the USA and Canada (including future expansion teams in Nashville, Miami and Austin).
Links:
MLS
https://www.youtube.com/user/mls
https://plus.google.com/u/0/111490959…
Cornerstone
http://www.cornerstoneagency.com/
The Fader
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