Sports drink giant Gatorade launched a multi-strand, global ‘The Next 90 Minutes’ campaign to leverage the 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup which sets out to inspire future generations to achieve greatness, by facing any challenge ahead with confidence.
Spearheaded by a film starring Argentina’s Lionel Messi, Gatorade’s campaign aims to reinforce the idea that, no matter the level of athlete, physical and mental preparation is the key to confidence on the pitch.
A long-standing Gatorade endorser, the seven-time Ballon D’Or winner, features alongside other ambassadors from the brand’s soccer stable including legends Roberto Carlos and Robert Pires: this trio unite to show how the secret to success is less about the challenge itself and more about how prepared you are to face it.
Launched a week ahead of the start of Qatar 2022, Gatorade’s Argentine captain and Paris Saint-Germain forward fronted spot encourages viewers to ‘Never Settle’ and promotes the idea that a winning mindset as the key to attaining peak physical and mental performance.
To celebrate Messi’s achievements, alongside the hero commercial, Gatorade launched a limited-edition version of its ‘Gx Bottle’ co-designed by Messi himself. The Messi Gx bottle is available to buy only in the USA at Gatorade.com and in selected stores.
The abstract design is inspired by the Art Deco and Art Nouveau styles to pay homage to the culture that raised and continues to inspire him. The packaging includes illustrations capturing his footballing life and legacy: from his hometown and his home country Argentina (represented by iconic monuments and landmarks including the Paraná River), to his love for the game (represented by a pitch, a penalty box, a goal, a ball and a pair of boots). Messi’s signature celebratory stance is represented in gold and forms the focal point of the back of the bottle.
“Through Gatorade’s long-standing partnership with Messi, we’ve witnessed first-hand his level of preparation, and how this brings the confidence needed to conquer any challenge in front of him,” explained PepsiCo Senior Marketing Director Robert Blythe. “Our new hero film demonstrates how Gatorade fuels the greatest athletes on their own paths to greatness at the most important moments of their career, whilst celebrating Messi’s world-renowned desire to win. Through ‘The Next 90 Minutes’ we want to inspire future G.O.A.T.s that preparation, dedication and facing challenges head on is what it takes to be the best.”
Messi himself commented: “Throughout my career, I’ve learned that success is a result of a combination of factors, but preparation plays a key part. Taking the time to prepare your body and mind, and visualize the game ahead is a skill in itself. This is why it’s been amazing to work with Gatorade to launch ‘The Next 90 Minutes’ campaign, to share my pregame ritual, and inspire the next generation on their own path to greatness”.
Comment
The Argentine captain and Paris Saint-Germain forward is a long-time Gatorade athlete ambassador and has worked with him during multiple pivotal career and tournament moments and recent work includes 2022’s ‘Inner Voices’, 2021’s ‘Messi Mindset’ and 2020’s ‘Goat Camp‘.
This PepsiCo campaign takes a classic World Cup tactic of building around a global idea to capitalise on World Cup excitement and ambush official FIFA partner and rival Coca-Cola. While the limited edition bottle strand leans a little in to the sports memorabilia and collectibles culture.
Gatorade is executed several strategic marketing shifts in recent months. Parent company PepsiCo will no longer host its US flagship Super Bowl Halftime Show, although Gatorade itself is exploring new strand to its NFL relationship with the production of a new, league-specific sports drink for players which is scheduled to become commercially available in 2023.
Leave a comment
You must be logged in to post a comment.