A new Gatorade spot, acting as a retirement tribute to US women’s soccer legend Abby Wambach sees the star urge her fans to ‘Forget I Ever Existed’.
Wambach, 35, scored more international goals than any other player (male or female) and won Olympic gold twice, as well as last year’s World Cup hung up her boots for good in late December.
Launched to coincide with her final match, the autobiographical ad sees the striker hope that fans will never talk about her again so that the game itself can move forward.
‘Forget Me’ reflects Wambach’s desire to see a new generation of athletes to continue taking the game to the next level and aims to reinforce a playing career that has seen push the women’s game forward and champion equal rights beyond the pitch
‘Forget the medals won, the records broken and the sacrifices made,” says Wambach. ‘I want to leave a legacy where the ball keeps rolling forward, where the next generation accomplishes things so great that I am no longer remembered.’
To reinforce the seriousness of her stance, Wambach deactivated her own personal social media channels and pages on the day before her final game with the World Cup winning USA Women’s National Team.
Created by agency TBWA/Chiat/Day, the ad debuted on TV during the USA’s match against China broadcast on Fox Sports 1.
Gatorade then rolled the spot, which runs under its ongoing ‘Win From Within’ umbrella platform’, out across its various digital channels.
‘Abby is truly a special athlete, both to Gatorade because she’s been with the brand for over 12 years, and to the sport of soccer because of her great passion for growing the game,’ said Kenny Mitchell, Gatorade’s senior director for consumer engagement.
‘When thinking about her retirement, we wanted to honour and celebrate Abby and her tremendous impact on the game while supporting her final message to fans with a campaign inspired by her own words.
Comment
Leveraging a star athlete endorser’s retirement has been a powerful play in recent sports marketing.
Indeed, Gatorade itself won a shower of awards for its powerful farewell for ambassador Derek Jeter when he finished his glittering career with the New York Yankees in 2014.
But Wambach’s departing spot cuts through because of its quiet reflection and the finality of her fame.
It is certainly unusual for any famous athlete and/or big brand endorser to finish a career by asking fans to forget they ever existed.
Indeed, most retiring athlete’s primary aim to to remain relevant and in the public eye in order to peruse new (lucrative) careers
Think LeBron James and his recent ‘lifetime’ endorsement deal with Nike – which will ensure he continues to front the apparel brand’s marketing long after his on-court career is over..
Yet, with 2,198,915 YouTube views within two weeks, we suspect that Wambach won’t be forgotten and it won’t be the last we see of her around the sport or around ads either.
Links
Gatorade YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/user/whatsg
Gatorade Website:
Gatorade Google+:
https://plus.google.com/u/1/108751617052272275707/videos
TBWA/Chiat/Day:
