adidas: Pogba x Stormzy Sports adidas United Kingdom
The Brief
Use the hype around the most expensive transfer in history to position Adidas Football in a unique way that would genuinely appeal to the brand’s target audience.
OUR INSIGHT
Big money transfers don’t have cultural impact. They’re all suits and scarves. Rarely living up to the hype. Music is a massive part of football culture, especially for our target audience of football-mad, teenagers. Adidas is one of the few brands that can authentically create something that delivers on a sporting and cultural level.
THE IDEA
We bought creators from different worlds together to land the football transfer with an attitude that would transcend into street culture.
Grime MC & Manchester United fan, Stormzy and Paul Pogba collaborated in a music video that announced the transfer to the world.
Pogba showcased his style and Stormzy gave him the soundtrack to do it. This hard-hitting collaboration was ‘accidentally’ leaked on social to break the news ahead of traditional media.
The music video created a mass spike in conversation, online and off, and remix culture amplified this even further.
Results
THE FANS LOVED IT
30 million people viewed the transfer announcement video.
WE REWROTE THE RULES
Football transfer announcements don’t usually go viral but 3 million people took the time to share this film.
THE MEDIA COULDN’T GET ENOUGH
The announcement drove hundreds of pieces of press coverage.
SHIRTS SOLD OUT
Following the announcement, adidas sold 190 million ‘Pogba 6’ shirts in just 3 weeks