The former Real Madrid, AC Milan and Netherlands midfielder Clarence Seedorf and undefeated Russian UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov teamed up to front an ambush ad for Etihad Airways promoting flights to Qatar ahead of the 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup.
The 70-second spot’s narrative arc features the sports stars upstaged by a ‘mystery passenger’ on an Etihad Airways flight from Abu Dhabi to Qatari capital Doha.
Travelling in first class, the mystery passenger sits next to Nurmagomedov, but is obscured by the retractable partition. Rather than being starstruck by the four-time Champions League-winner and UFC Hall-of-Famer, other passengers only ask whoever is sitting behind the partition for selfies, while commenting on the mystery passenger’s intelligence, powerful and speed. When the mixed martial arts star finally lowers the partition, viewers discover the passenger is a falcon. Etihad, being one of the Middle East airlines which lets passengers travel with a bird of prey.
The spot ends with the copy: “Etihad welcomes all football fans including falcons (yes, really!)”.
The campaign drives home the message that, ahead of Qatar 2022, Etihad is increasing its capacity to six flights per day along the one hour and five-minute route.
The ‘Expect Extraordinary: Fly Etihad for the biggest football tournament of the year” commercial aired across TV, on-board and online from 6 October and encourages viewers to find out more and book at www.etihad.com/football.
Of course, neither the ad nor the press release specifically mention of the FIFA World Cup and simply refer to it as ‘the biggest football tournament of 2022’ because Etihad Airways is not an official sponsor of the event. The official FIFA and tournament airline partner is the host nation flag carrier Qatar Airways.
“Football is my first love so it’s an exciting time to be flying to Doha for the biggest tournament in the world,” said Nurmagomedov. “Being part of the Etihad Airways film was an unforgettable experience for me because I had never met this extraordinary VIP before or had the chance to get close to anyone like him. Although we do have a lot in common as you will hear in the film. I’m sure everyone will enjoy the video, and all football fans flying to Doha will have a great time in this beautiful part of the world.”
Etihad VP Of Brand, Marketing and Sponsorships Amina Taher added: “With football’s greatest event taking place on our doorstep, we couldn’t resist the chance to remind football fans of the convenience of flying through Abu Dhabi to enjoy the beautiful game. To make it as convenient as possible, we’ll be flying six return services a day between Abu Dhabi and Doha to accommodate travellers both locally as well as connecting in from around the world. Creating this video was an excellent opportunity to partner with Khabib, Clarence and our mystery guest, to bring the Etihad experience to life for football fans.”
Comment
Qatar 2022 and Etihad might both welcome birds of prey, but whether all football fans will actually be welcomed remains to be seen.
Official tournament airline Qatar Airways itself has also promoted how it is changing its operations to deal with the increased demand coming its way during November and December.
But it seems likely that Etihad might profit during the World Cup due to the lack of accommodation in the host country: which is leading many visiting supporters to base themselves in the UAE before travelling over to Qatar for games. Plus, a recent YouGov study found that more than a quarter of soccer fans in the UAE are planning to visit Qatar to watch matches in person.
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