Mondelez Furthers its Commitment to Soccer

Snack food giant Mondelez International has continued its commitment to soccer through the #PassTheLoveBack campaign.

For the third straight year, this multibrand program from the Official Snacks of U.S. Soccer and the Official Snacks of Major League Soccer will leverage U.S. Women's National Team forward Alex Morgan and some of the most popular players and organizations in the sport – with a strong focus on rallying support for the local teams and communities who play and cheer the games coast to coast.

Local pride

"Our snack brands have a very natural connection to soccer at the local level, and if you look in the stands or in the post-game celebrations chances are you'll find them there," said Stephen Chriss, senior director for North America marketing activation and strategic partnerships at Mondelez International. "We take a lot of pride in this connection to local communities, so we're extremely excited to evolve our popular soccer campaign to #PassTheLoveBack to the teams, players and parents who show their passion for soccer day in day, day out."

Local teams often have to find ways to support themselves for soccer equipment and other resources. The #PassTheLoveBack campaign will help bridge the divide and connect teams with enhancements. Through May 31, communities are encouraged to recruit friends and family to visit www.PassTheLove.com to support their local soccer teams in earning up to $1,000 for custom T-shirts or team donations.

This will be an integrated campaign supported by thousands of custom #PassTheLoveBack multipack snack packs that include Oreo cookies, Ritz Bits crackers and Chips Ahoy cookies.  The campaign also will include retail displays, shopper marketing programs, real-time social content, interactive consumer events and public relations.

This is the third year the Official Snacks of U.S. Soccer have prompted fans to "Pass the Love." In 2014 and 2015, the campaign rallied messages of support for the U.S. Men's National Team and the U.S. Women's National Team as they competed in the largest international soccer tournaments on earth.

Morgan, who began her collaboration with the Official Snacks of U.S. Soccer in 2014 and helped lead the USWNT to a victory in Canada last summer, is excited to see the campaign rallying support at the local level.

"Growing up playing youth soccer, fundraisers were a huge part of my experience," said Morgan, the U.S. Soccer star who has worked with Mondelez International since 2014. "The soccer community is incredibly supportive of one another, and I'm excited to see [these] brands … generating support nationally for players and teams in our communities."

The designations of Official Snacks of U.S. Soccer and MLS extend to the cookie, candy, cracker and gum categories and are inclusive of a series of well-recognized brands operated by Deerfield, Ill.-based Mondelez International, that also includes Wheat Thins, Honey Maid, Newtons, BelVita, Trident, Dentyne, Stride and Sour Patch Kids.