Under Armour Launches Football Campaign Starring ManU's Memphis Depay

Under Armour released its first global football campaign starring ManU player Memphis Depay, according to Khidr Suleman of PR WEEK. The campaign, titled "Slay your next giant," was developed in partnership with creative agency Droga5, which also worked on Under Armour's "I will what I want" and "Rule yourself" adverts. Interestingly, the campaign "looks to be fluid." Under Armour will be providing footballers with customized laces "engraved with a personal goal." As players reach each milestone, they will remove their laces and replace them with a new pair -- a process that will be documented on social media -- @UnderarmourUK/@UnderArmour and #SlayYourNextGiant on Twitter and Instagram (PR WEEK, 9/22).

UPHILL BATTLE: FAST COMPANY's Jeff Beer reported compared to rivals like Nike and adidas, Under Armour is "a rookie when it comes to global football." That is "exactly where it wants to be." The campaign features Depay, Tottenham's 17-year-old American academy player Cameron Carter-Vickers, "as well as young up-and-coming players" from Brazil, Chile, Mexico, and the U.K. It taps a "familiar underdog mentality, and the tagline might as well be a rallying cry for the brand itself." Even though it now sponsors teams like Tottenham and Brasileiro club São Paulo, it faces an "uphill battle against brands with deeper ties to the game." Under Armour Senior VP of Global Brand Marketing Adrienne Lofton said, "What separates us from the clutter is this blue-collar work ethic. We're an underdog brand. ... We pick that athlete with a chip on their shoulder and their desire to win because it aligns with our own attitude" (FAST COMPANY, 9/23).