Hails & Fails – November 25th 2022
As the whole world is consumed by everything World Cup-related we’ve seen some fantastic football-themed PR wins in the headlines this week.
Brazen client Greene King offered liquid prizes to punters with footballer surnames, Louis Vuitton got soccer’s biggest rivals to square off over a game of chess and TBWA Paris came up with an inspired solution to the World Cup ban on rainbow armbands. It was a different story for World Cup organisers FIFA however, after they came under fire from commentators everywhere for banning ‘Love’ at the World Cup.
HAILS
Free pints for drinkers with a World Cup surname
Brazen client Greene King offered free pints to footy fans who share a surname with any of the 50 members of the England or Wales football squads.
Lucky punters are able to grab a free pint, bottle of Ice Breaker Pale Ale or alternative soft drink at more than 800 Greene King pubs.
The chain is showing every England and Wales match of the tournament at its sports pubs nationwide.
Cue coverage everywhere!
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo play chess for Louis Vuitton
A photograph of footballers Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi playing chess has been lauded as the “picture of the century” across social media.
In the image, shot by legendary American photographer Annie Leibovitz for Louis Vuitton, the two world cup rivals take each other on at a game of chess over a Louis Vuitton trunk, alongside the caption: “Victory is a State of Mind”.
The trunk they’re playing on was the official carrier for the £15 million FIFA World Cup trophy during the 2018 World Cup. And the position of the chess pieces mimics an iconic game between two Chess Grandmasters, which took place at Norway Chess in Stavanger in June 2017.
It has been lauded widely across social media this week (64million likes and counting…) as well as filling columns across global media.
TBWA wins the rainbow armbands debate
Advertising agency TBWA Paris have won hearts and minds with an inspired solution to the controversial ban on rainbow armbands at the World Cup – a black and white armband with Pantone codes representing the colours of the Pride rainbow.
The campaign comes after the captains of seven European teams who were planning to wear a One Love armband at World Cup – to take a stand against homophobia in Qatar – were told to remove them by the world football governing body, FIFA.
The genius campaign has won applause on social media right across the world this week.
FAILS
FIFA gets a red card for ‘love’ ban
Football’s world governing body, FIFA, has come under heavy fire after it ordered Belgium to remove the word “love” from their away shirts at the Qatar World Cup.
The move follows FIFA’s warning to several teams that their captains would incur yellow cards if they wore special OneLove armbands at the tournament, which forced those nations – including England and Wales, as well as Belgium – to drop the plans.
FIFA pushed the Belgium national team to remove the “love” wording embroidered in the shirt collar of the team’s white away shirt.
And angry commentators have been fierce in their criticism of the organisation right across the globe.
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