Just as Nike is ambushing official FIFA partner adidas, and Pepsi is trying to spoil Coca-Cola’s World Cup party, Volkswagen has entered the guerrilla game by trying to outfox World Cup sponsor Hyundai with a quirky US ambush stunt.
The German auto brand is focusing its activity around own half-time, to challenge Hyundai’s ESPN broadcast partnership, by running so-called ‘Gooooolf Celebration’ videos on the US sports channel’s site.
These cheeky digital banner ads feature various coloured Golf GTI’s (which match the national team strip colours of the scoring country) racing across a cyber pitch whenever a goal is scored.
This tactic also stretches to its social platforms as VW’s Twitter feed is also running matching real time videos of GTI’s in country colours celebrating World Cup goals during matches as the ball hits the back of the net.
Click below link to view digital spot.
http://cdn.notube.co/539eb8640ad1b8020044bd2d/high.mp4
The campaign, which has been developed with agency Deutsch LA, is merely part of VW’s wider World Cup work which includes its ‘OneFootball Brasil’ news app.
This offers fans everything from match news, player speculation and rumours, live scores, stats, rosters, Twitter feeds and social network-style discussions and comments.
VW is also partnering ABC’s World Cup coverage and activating this deal through ad break blipverts.
Comment
FIFA sponsors such as Hyundai/Kia pay around $350m for World Cup partnerships, but VW’s spoiler activity clearly comes much, much cheaper.
The German car marquee made a major ad buy across ESPN, ABC and Univision to push its GTI during coverage of the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil because it believes the World Cup is the right audience to showcase its performance-oriented GTI which is particularly popular amoung younger males and Hispanic consumers.
Some may also feel it is a little more engaging and characterful than Hyundai’s slightly bland ‘Glorious Journey’ global World Cup campaign (see case study) and even its US #BecauseFootball activity (see case study).
Although the US work for sister company and fellow sponsor Kia is somewhat punchier, albeit more sexist, work (see case study).
It’s not the first time that VW in the USA has activated around soccer goal celebrations and the World Cup – it also ran an innovative, integrated campaign revolving around South Africa 2010.
Back in 2009/10 it created a Jnr Masters training camp, tournament and competition to promote a new minivan vehicle launch.
Link
VW One Football Brazil App
http://www.onefootball.com/brasil-by-volkswagen/?
VW USA Twitter
@VW
