Xbox, Sega and Football Manager partnered with professional football club Bromley FC, a promotion hopeful in the fifth tier of English football to offer one Football Manager player a real-life six-month coaching role at the club. A real-world recruitment process led Bromley to appoint 23-year-old Nathan Owolabi, a Wembley Stadium tour guide, to the role. Owolabi’s progress was documented in a documentary that was broadcast on TNT Sports’ YouTube channel.
Direct Jury president, Pancho Cassis, partner and global chief creative officer, David, outlined two goals the jury had when it came to awarding work. He said they were looking for ‘those ideas that can find people in places and moments that a traditional campaign wouldn’t’. The jury was also keen to celebrate what Pancho called ‘the most classic definition of Direct’ i.e. ‘inviting people to do something for the campaign that makes the campaign bigger, more shareable and more famous’.
Cassis outlined four key trends that emerged from this year’s entries. He cited the return of brands focusing on selling products and services; AI being used in the right way and not as a gimmick; the prominence of digitally based campaigns amplified through easy audience interaction; and brands demonstrating consistency by committing to campaigns and platforms over long periods of time.
Cassis told Contagious why the authenticity of using an unlikely influencer was so effective. He said ‘When brands are authentic, they're honest, transparent, and they don't go for the big bucks and celebrities to connect more. The Everyday Tactician could have been a YouTuber famous for playing the game, but that wouldn't have connected, instead they got the everyday person.’
In an interview published on Contagious IQ earlier this year, McCann London senior strategist Alex Passingham also highlighted the value of authenticity to the campaign.
‘From day one in this campaign, everyone involved from us to Bromley have really wanted this to be authentic, and not something that’s seen as a marketing gimmick,’ Passingham explained. ‘The fact that this is a real life job opportunity at a club where the individual will be able to have a genuine impact on the club, but also on their career moving forward is just really exciting.’
