Ahead of the 2022 Champions League Final, UEFA partner Pepsi teamed up with Yum Brands’ fast food chains Pizza Hut and KFC for a gaming activation fronted by Paul Pogba called ‘Score With Pogba’.
As this year’s UCL tournament reaches its climax, the soft drink sponsor worked with both quick service company marketing teams and production outfit Tool of North America to develop an Augmented Reality (AR) mobile game called ‘Score With Pogba’ which is accessed by scanning QR codes on select product packaging, at points of sale and through a bespoke microsite.
The activation is available in 20 markets and is accessed via special packaging and in-store collateral, bridging mobile and real-world marketing elements.
The game itself, which is in the ‘runner genre’, puts consumers in Pogba’s boots as he dribbles the ball and slides under obstacles to obtain points in the form of Pepsi, Pizza Hut icons. Participants who notch up points in the game can make the leader board and create a custom player card showing off and sharing their own personal statistics to share on social media.
While the KFC ‘Champions Challenge’ collaboration, which was developed with studio Sky Pie, invited players to build an elaborate Rube Goldberg-esque contraption that serves a bucket of fried chicken with a freshly poured Pepsi. The machine was built in New York City and filmed for digital and social content that attempts to encapsulate the small moments that build toward the UEFA championship match.
The KFC strand of the Pepsi Pogba campaign is more conceptual and attempts to embody the small, micro moments that accumulate in the lead-up to the UEFA Champions League Final through a Rube Goldberg device.
It is promoted through a video which sees Pogba kick a ball through floating hoops carried by drones to hit the contraption and kick off a process that eventually serves him a meal of KFC and Pepsi.
The objective is to generate brand buzz and pre-game excitement ahead of the UEFA Champions League Final kick-off on 28 May.
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Pogba has a long-standing ambassador relationship with Pepsi and among his previous activations are March 2022’s ‘Play To Inspire’ and 2021s ‘Pepsi TikTok Challenge’.
While the France and Manchester United FC midfielder Pogba is not playing in the game, interest in the Pepsi ambassador remains high as he is planning to leave the Premier League giant when his contract expires in June and speculation is rife about where he will end up.
This co-branded activation seeks to engage the hyper-casual mobile gaming space which has seen a growth in popularity during the pandemic and which reaches a more diverse and mass market audience than more hardcore console game offerings.
These activations are part of Pesi’s wider UEFA Champions League 2022 Final activations which also include being the title sponsor of the pre-game Opening Ceremony with Camila Cabello.
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