Man Utd Partner Aperol Spritz Launches Player-Led Summer Spot

Manchester United present (Rooney, di Maria and Carrick) and past (Yorke and Cole) front a new TV spot, called ‘Contagiously’, for drinks sponsor Aperol Spritz.

This is the club’s official drinks partner’s first TV commercial leveraging its Manchester United sponsorship rights.

The narrative opens with Wayne Rooney, Angel di Maria and Michael Carrick seemingly taking part in a normal team training session, which is interrupted when men drop a pitch perimeter style advertising board behind them.

‘What was that?’ asks Di Maria.

‘That ‘was Aperol Spritz,’ replies Carrick.

After which Rooney strikes a practice free kick which ends up in the arms of Dwight Yorke.

Former Red Devils strike partners Yorke and Andy Cole then make cameo as bartenders and beckon the players to join them at the bar as sand magically appears beneath their feet and current players Valencia and Smalling join them.

The barman keep the Aperol Spritz flowing as Carrick shows off his skills using an orange before Rooney and Di Maria play table football together.

A 20-second teaser version called ‘What’s On’ was first released on YouTube on 29 May,

followed immediately by the roll out of the full, 40-second ‘Contagiously’ spot.

A stereotypical summer spot – complete with sand, sun, and Hawaiian floral necklaces and a classic summer anthemic soundtrack

The ad runs with the copy line: ‘Let’s discover the contagious joy at Manchester United’s training sessions…’ and is promoted by the (overly long) hashtag #ContagiouslyAperolSpritz.

It is also being promoted through the drinks brand’s social channels – such as Twitter

Andrew Cole after been caught by a contagious #summer wave! #ContagiouslyAperolSpritz #ManchesterUnited pic.twitter.com/ITdKsBZfgv

— Aperol Spritz (@Aperol_Spritz) June 10, 2015

A “legendary” #AperolSpritz, please! #ManchesterUnited pic.twitter.com/6QJD76LE84

— Aperol Spritz (@Aperol_Spritz) June 8, 2015

and on its Pinterest page.

The sponsor, club and players worked in harness with sports specialist film production outfit The Mob Film Company and Mob Sport.

Comment

Creatively, this spot is more ‘cringeworthy’ than ‘contagiously’.

When footballers turn their hand to acting the results can vary dramatically and it’s fair to say none of these players should be thinking about a career on the stage.

While it does dovetail with the brand’s wider light-hearted positioning and it the club and player selection certainly help boost its objective of expanding international reach, one wonders why it has taken until now before the first commercial launches when Aperol Spritz’s partnership with the Old Trafford club has already been running for 18 months.

With a history dating back to Italy in 1919, the drink (which is light on alcohol and claims a complex taste deriving from a so called secret recipe infusion of herbs and roots) is traditionally positioned to evoke an Italian lifestyle.

But much of its Manchester United marketing takes a more generic approach to broaden its international appeal.

It was back in January 2014 that Aperol became the Official Global Spirits Partner of Manchester United when its signed a three-and-a-half year partnership deal largely based around year-round brand exposure, consumer engagement and promotional opportunities across established and new global markets.

According to the brand and the club, the synergies between the team and the drink are about social inclusions, a light-hearted and smart casual character and the international presence all over the world.

The partnerships offers Aperol Spritz a wide ranging set of global rights from pitchside digital perimeter ads and logo usage, to player access and being served in Old Trafford VIP suites.

Links

Aperol Spritz YouTube:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClC406HUDyJunfDflESMy4Q

Aperol Spritz Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/AperolSpritz

Aperol Spritz Instagram:

https://instagram.com/aperolspritzoff…

Aperol Spritz Twitter:

https://twitter.com/aperol_spritz

Aperol Spritz Google+:

https://plus.google.com/110545183582574074241/posts

Aperol Spritz Pinterest: