In the build up to the Euroleague Final Four, title sponsor Turkish Airlines has rolled out a fun ‘Pool Dunk’ spot to promote the mid May Milan event.
The epic swimming pool 11-man dunk video features several of the league’s star players – including Shawn James, Kyle Hines, Robin Benzing and Sergio Rodriguez – hanging out beside a swimming pool and causally tossing the basketball to one another until one rises from the water on a jetpack and sends an alley-oop for a spectacular dunk.
Turkish Airlines, in partnership with agency CP+B London, created the 30-second TV spot with a one-shot take.
The whole spot team only had only a day to choreograph, rehearse and shoot and the complete final version came on take 22.
Thus far the film has accrued 2.3 million YouTube views, while the behind-the-scenes film of the one-shot shoot has been watched by a further 250,000 viewers.
Turkish Airlines advertising manager Serdar Sirin, along with ad manager Yeliz Nur Celayir led the spkinsor’#s team, while CP+B’s creative team was led by Matt Gooden, Tessie Gaertner, Henrik Delehag and Ben Carey, with account directors Genevieve Sexton Account Director and Avital Fineman, plus producer Rob Steiner,
The campaign promotes basketball’s battle for European supremacy – the climax of the 2014 Turkish Airlines Euroleague.
This takes place in Milan where the Final Four – CSKA Moscow, Maccabi Electra Tel Aviv, FC Barcelona and Real Madrid – fight it out for the city’s biggest ever basketball event.
A specially prepared court complex at Mediolanum Forum, complete with media tribune and VIP areas, will host the semi-finals and final, plus the culmination of the Euroleague Basketball NIKE International Junior Tournament is also branded by the league’s title sponsor.
While a Turkish Airlines Euroleague Fan Zone has been built in the centre’s of the city’s iconic Piazza del Duomo to host huge screens to show the action live, plus entertainment, NBA star appearances, cheerleaders, exhibitions and other contests.
Not to be outdone by their sportswear rival, fans are also being encouraged to take part in one of five adidas 3X3 tournaments through the weekend.
Comment
Turkish Airlines recently extended its title sponsorship of Euroleague Basketball (Turkish Airlines Euroleague) to 2020 (the original partnership, the league’s first title deal, began in 2010).
The ‘Pool Dunk’ campaign builds on previous activation – which spanned social media promotions, mass-market documentaries and live in-flight game broadcasts and its ‘One Team’ collaboration (its CSR programme empowering disadvantaged communities through basketball) that all aimed to boost worldwide visibility of Euroleague.
The airline also uses basketball and other sporting brand ambassador in its marketing work – such as the recent ‘Kobe vs Messi’ campaign.
It also builds on previous high profile sports sponsorships from the airline, which have included partnering with FC Barcelona and Manchester United, which have been used by the company to ‘develop more efficient and compelling communication between the brand and potential passengers in Europe’.
Euroleague, Europe’s premier basketball competition, was founded in 2000 under a private organisational model mixing typical European models with the US approach to professional sports.
The competition features 24 clubs from 12 or more countries per season and crowns its champion each spring at the Euroleague Final Four.
Links
Pool Dunk TVC YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hJW5_iZNdFY
Pool Dunk Behind The Scenes Video YouTube
Turkish Airlines YouTube Channel
https://www.youtube.com/user/TURKISHAIRLINES
Euroleague Website
Euroleague YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/user/Euroleague
