Brands Unleash 6-Minute World Cup Ads as Entertainment Overtakes Direct Selling
Updated
Updated · BBC.com · Jun 12
Brands Unleash 6-Minute World Cup Ads as Entertainment Overtakes Direct Selling
3 articles · Updated · BBC.com · Jun 12
Summary
Nike’s nearly 6-minute "Rip the Script" and Adidas’s 5-minute World Cup films are leading a wave of long, celebrity-packed campaigns that look more like mini-movies than conventional commercials.
Brands are leaning into entertainment because younger audiences resist overt marketing, prompting advertisers to prioritize cultural engagement and lifestyle appeal over straightforward pitches for boots, drinks or snacks.
The push has drawn in football stars including Erling Haaland, Kylian Mbappe, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Jude Bellingham alongside celebrities such as Channing Tatum, Kim Kardashian, Bad Bunny and LeBron James.
TV still plays a role through shorter cutdowns, while extra hydration breaks during matches give broadcasters more ad slots and send viewers online for the full versions.
Smaller brands are taking a different route: Irn-Bru’s Scotland campaign uses Susan Boyle and fan culture rather than blockbuster spectacle, showing the tournament has become a contest in advertising as well as football.