FIFA 2010 – Let the Marketing Games Begin!
In our previous marketing class we shortly discussed the battle of marketing supremacy between Adidas and Nike during South Africa’s 2010 FIFA World Cup. I found this topic especially interesting because I consider soccer (or football as it’s known to the rest of the world) to be a large aspect in my life and from which I can share personal experience. Being raised in Serbia, I find that soccer is not only seen as a sport but as a passion and a part of a country’s culture.
Why is this relevant to marketing? Because in Europe the World Cup isn’t just a “bandwagon” event (as the SuperBowl was for many of us) but it is a continental phenomenon, that can only be compared to the symbolism of hockey in Canada. I believe that soccer is a core value for many of the sport’s fans, and that Adidas and Nike battling to associate themselves with this core value is very similar to how the beer company Molson Canadian fights to associate themselves with Canadian core values as seen in this video. As we learned in class, even the best marketing cannot change core values, but if successfully used, associating a brand with a core value is an extremely valuable long-term asset for both brand recognition and loyalty. To create this association with a core value, Nike and Adidas undertook very different strategies.
Adidas was the Official World Cup Sponsor, but Nike used forms of ambush marketing to create ambiguity about this fact while building their own brand awareness. Our class discussion mentioned that Nike’s actions may be unethical but as this external study explains it is anything but ineffective.
