Since it has been making the rounds since its debut yesterday, we might as well post the full version of Nike’s (courtesy of Wieden + Kennedy, of course) stunning “Write The Future” World Cup video. The premise is pretty basic—winners will be remembered for their accomplishments, while history is less kind to those who fail in soccer’s biggest event—yet the video is remarkable to watch.
If the Nike and W+K connection isn’t enough, watch for another local connection, as one of the “what-if” sequences features Kobe Bryant burying a game winning jumper over a totally fictitious Portland Trail Blazers team (as Blazer bloggers were quick to point out, that team in the commercial was wearing headbands, something coach Nate McMillan does not allow). Still this video makes me want to buy Nikes and play soccer, so I guess it’s pretty effective.
It took two days and I am already stepping on Brian Costello’s beat. Sorry.
Nike is pushing “football” – not just to sell the website internationally but see what they can do to push the world’s name for soccer into the USA. we’ll see how well that works.
Wow! Great ad (even though Adidas is the official sponsor for the WC). Also, didn’t Ronaldinho not make the cut for the Brazil roster?
Sports: they’re so very important.
wow. I think I just sneezed in my pants a little
+1 for Hocus Pocus by Focus.
Also, there wasn’t even a three point line on the court where Kobe beat the fake Blazers. I guess the soccer division doesn’t really talk to the basketball division over at Nike.
Curse you Ezra! I was going to post about this today! 😉 Uh, Uh, BREAKING NEWS: TRAILBLAZERS MOVING TO FAIRBANKS, AK! Yeah, that’s it. Scoop!
As for the vid, it’s vintage W+K quality though both they and Nike have got to be a bit embarrassed/disappointed that though they feature Ronaldinho’s samba moves, he was hardly considered at all to make Brazil’s 2010 World Cup squad. He may make it as an injury replacement but popular sentiment is that that is an extreme longshot.
Four years ago, he was king of the soccer world and now he’ll be home watching the Cup on television–much like Rooney’s alternate history nightmare is presented in the video.
All that made me want to do was turn off the video. MEH, I say.
At 1:30 they missed how the blue player would be on the ground wailing in “pain” due to a slide tackle.
THAT is soccer. THAT is why it doesn’t fly in the U.S. Whining has no place in the United States.
Soccer doesn’t sell well in the US because there are not enough goals. Ask an American football fan what their least favorite score is. 3-0. If you really want it to take off here, make it easier to score.
W+K makes God want to hurt kittens.
Ribery’s inclusion is a little odd considering his deteriorating play, injuries, boot from the Champ. League final and the fact he’s generally now a more goofy looking guy than he is a great player.
Oh, and that he “finished in the box” with an underage prostitute (Timbers, take a lesson!).
SPK – you really think they should change the rules that have made it the most successful sport in the world by a huge margin, just to make it more palatable to the attention spans of one single country with less than 5% of the world’s population?
And you wonder why the rest of the world thinks Americans are arrogant…
This is a fantastic ad, but “history is less kind to those who fail in soccer’s biggest event”? Tell that to Zinedine Zidane. Everyone remembers that guy.
stu,
Yes, because the United States generate massive amounts of revenue for Sports Franchises. NFL, MLB and the NBA are the most lucrative franchises on the planet, in that order.