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Hangin' With ... Under Armour VP Of Global Brand & Sports Marketing Peter Murray

PETER MURRAY is Under Armour's VP of Global Brand & Sports Marketing. UA has been involved in the global football market for several years and boasts partnerships with first-division clubs on three continents, including Liga MX sides Cruz Azul and Toluca, Chilean first division club Colo-Colo and Brasileiro side São Paulo. In addition to its sponsorship of EPL club Tottenham Hotspur, the brand's ties in European football include deals with Dutch club AZ Alkmaar and 2nd Bundesliga side St. Pauli. The latest step in UA's effort to compete with the likes of Nike and adidas in int'l football is its new "Slay Your Next Giant" campaign featuring ManU's Memphis Depay. Depay, 21, is the oldest of six players who star in the campaign. The others highlighted are 7-year-old Thomas, from England; 9-year-old Oswaldo, from Mexico; 11-year-old Eduardo, from Chile; 14-year-old Adriano, from Brazil; and 17-year-old Cameron Carter-Vickers of Tottenham's youth academy. Murray spoke with SBD Global about the timing of the campaign, competing with established football brands and the selection of Depay as an ambassador.

On what the campaign looks to convey ...
Peter Murray: For us it's about the challenge any brand faces when building presence in a category: achieving authenticity. So building awareness for the UA global football brand is key, and that's what we're working on and seeing results in. We certainly put our stake in the ground with the "Slay Your Next Giant" positioning and campaign. And we're going to continue to tell that story with compelling content around the world and back it up with the world-class product that we have. We're quite proud of our boots. We're a legitimate, head-to-toe football brand. There is demand for our brand and that product in the sport of global football.

On the timing of the campaign ...
Murray: We've been in the sport and really began to authenticate ourselves with what I would call team relationships in outfitting world-class teams with Under Armour technology and kits. ... We're excited about entering into this marketplace globally on a meaningful basis. ... From a timing standpoint, the hunger for our brand is global. We know this is the perfect time for UA to accelerate our growth in the world's most popular sport. It's just the right timing, where we are based on our international footprint and strategy and plans to grow outside the U.S., and how that tracks with our global football strategy and plan.

On the role the popularity of recent World Cups played in the creation of the campaign ...
Murray: It's more about our global brand and timing. Again, where we are with our international business and how it's timed with where we are in our global football strategy and plan. There are no other kind of marketplace or factors in the sport that are dictating our strategy and plan. We're dictating that, and frankly we're leading with footwear.

On Memphis Depay ...
Murray: Memphis is one of the world's best young footballers. He's a great addition to our brand's elite athlete roster. He's a rising star, no question. His explosive and fast style of play, combined with his unrelenting will, make him a game changer. He's already showing great promise in the Premier League with ManU. That unstoppable, aggressive mentality makes him a very natural fit for the UA brand from a cultural standpoint.

On competition with established brands like Nike and adidas ...
Murray: We don't really look at it as an outsider. We're all about performance. We know athletes and frankly, everything we do is built to make athletes better. So this sport is no different, but it's critically important that we're culturally relevant and we approach it the right way. And we do that by talking to athletes around the world, talking to world-class global football clubs and federations on the needs of the athlete, and for the sport, to improve the game. We're excited about the future around the world for the brand and the business, and where it meets this sport.

On target regions ...
Murray: There are priority sort of markets within different regions around the world. But clearly Europe, North America as well as South America, they're all key regions where we have brand presence as well as assets within the sport to activate. Asia is another market where there are many consumers and athletes who are interested in global football. 

Hangin' With runs each Friday in SBD Global.

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