2009 Winners & Shortlists

Results and Effectiveness

Our brand health indicators sky-rocketed putting us far ahead vs. competition. Our football attribute increased by 4 pt, putting us ahead of competition by 7 points. Sales growth soared at a 16% increase across total sparkling product vs. Jan- Feb YA. Market share witnessed a 0.5 pt. increase over a two month span. The flag tour attained an astonishing 45% awareness and the flags themselves got over 45,000 signatures, a measure of pure consumer engagement. Unprompted, Coca-Cola was the most salient brand mentioned as the official sponsor of ACN, in Business Compass focus group study.

Creative Execution

Our strategy was to own the pre tournament, where pessimism was at its peak, and the opportunity to connect with fans was unprecedented. Positioning Coke as the official sponsor of the Egyptian fan, we created an extraordinary mobile nationwide event inviting them to join in the support, even if they couldn’t be in Ghana. Nothing could better symbolize our collective passion and nationalism than five mega Coca-Cola flags that toured 9 major cities across the nation asking all supporters to sign off good luck messages to their national team. Travelling on branded double decker buses, the flag tour took all busy streets, sports clubs and key youth hangouts by storm. Herds of fans gathered with painted faces, cheering gear and the works to show their support and autograph the flags. The flags were then presented to the national team in a huge gala dinner, by yours truly the fans themselves.

Insights, Strategy and the Idea

The African Cup of Nations is the most crucial tournament for Egyptians in the football calendar, and with direct competition owning all sponsorship and broadcasting rights, Coca-Cola’s brand association with football was in jeopardy. Egyptians truly believe that it’s our support as fans that drives national team wins. It is our painted faces, our drums, our catchy cheers, our women, our children and our passion for the game that fuels our win. Whenever we stand side by side our team, we are unbeatable. With the tournament being held in Ghana, far from Egyptian soil, if we couldn’t be there to support, we didn’t stand a chance. How could we build a connection with our pessimistic youth, increase our football ratings and create a place for Coke within this tournament? We created a mobile event, collecting cheers of passion and national pride that would eventually lead us to a victory unimaginable!