BT "is kicking off a major ad campaign featuring Gareth Bale and David Luiz to support the launch of European football on its BT Sport channel," according to Gurjit Degun of CAMPAIGN LIVE. The TV campaign, which was created by Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO with media by Maxus, takes inspiration for what BT calls the "glitz, glamour and spectacle" of the tournament. An online ad launched Friday "features the football stars alongside BT presenters and pundits including Rio Ferdinand and Michael Owen, posing like they are in the photobooth at a party." Alongside Bale and Luiz, who play for Real Madrid and Paris St. Germain respectively, "the campaign features Bayern Munich’s Franck Ribery, Manchester City’s Joe Hart and Arsenal’s Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain." The players will also star in the first TV ad "house party" which sees Ribery and teammates Philipp Lahm and Thiago Alcântara taking on a header challenge.
In a second TV ad Oliver, a client of BT, "tries to persuade the footballers to exchange their usual shirt number to zero to reflect the fact BT Sport is free for BT TV customers" (CAMPAIGN LIVE, 7/24).
