Powerade Heads to World Cup for 1st Global Marketing Campaign

In its inaugural global integrated marketing campaign, Powerade will encourage athletes “Keep Playing,” through such components as an innovative online experience and the presence of the Coca-Cola-owned brand at the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa. The organization, whose acronym stands for Fédération Internationale de Football Association and which is the international governing body of association football (that’s “soccer” to most Americans), has officially designated Powerade as “Chosen by FIFA to Hydrate 2010 FIFA World Cup Players.”

“FIFA only chooses the best technical partners to work with,” explained Prof. Jiri Dvorak, the association’s chief medical officer. “Players know they have to stay hydrated at all times, and the effective hydration and energy Powerade gives them will help them perform at their best and hopefully go a long way to achieving an exciting and competitive tournament for all the countries involved.”

For the monthlong tournament, which kicks off this summer, Powerade will be available at all 10 venues for 736 players from 32 countries before, during and after all 64 games, from the opening match between South Africa and Mexico on June 11 to the final in Johannesburg July 10, 2010. Additionally, a specially designed Powerade sports drink bottle will be featured at the games.

The brand has also unveiled a digital online film showing what occurs inside the human body when faced with different physical and mental scenarios while playing football. Hosted on www.youtube.com/powerade, the film depicts a “never-ending” worldwide football game and enables a viewer to click on certain frames for a cutting-edge “deep dive” into what’s going on within the minds and bodies of the players. For example, a viewer can follow the course of Powerade inside a player’s body to see how various organ functions are affected and find out how nutrient delivery boosts performance.

The Coca-Cola Co., a FIFA Partner, is one of the longest-standing corporate partners of the organization, with a formal association since 1974. The Powerade brand will be part of the company’s overall sponsorship marketing activation around the FIFA World Cup.

“The FIFA World Cup is the biggest sporting event in 2010 and an incredible platform for us to showcase the brand to a worldwide audience,” noted Mark Greatrex SVP, Still Beverages at Atlanta-based Coca-Cola, the world’s largest beverage company. “This is a major milestone for the Powerade brand and an indication of the importance of the sports drink category in our portfolio of beverages.”

As well as the 2010 FIFA World Cup logo, the “Chosen by FIFA to Hydrate 2010 FIFA World Cup Players” designation will figure prominently in all brand channels, including packaging, point-of-sale materials and 2010 FIFA World Cup merchandise and signage. Global marketing efforts for the Powerade brand will roll out in its top 20 markets, accounting for 95 percent of the brand’s volume, before and during the tournament.
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