Category : brazil

  • Brazil 2014: Under 500 Days And Counting

    This content was originally posted as our contribution to Synergy Sponsorship´s blog. You can find the original link here. Find out more about our partnership with Synergy here.

    Last week FIFA and the Brazilian government were going to celebrate 500 days to go to the 2014 FIFA World Cup, with a big press conference to present their aspirations for the tournament, a lot of facts and figures related to the investment in stadia and infrastructure, and the official tournament poster. Naturally however, the event was cancelled because of the Santa Maria tragedy, where over 200 people died in a fire at a local nightclub. It shocked the country and the world, and celebrations were the last thing on any Brazilian’s mind.

    Three days later, an official video with a compilation of work to date was released, together with the tournament poster (pictured above).

    Brazil is now within touching distance of hosting the FIFA World Cup for the second time in the country’s history (the first being back in 1950) but interestingly, the man on the street is feeling both excited and slightly concerned at the same time. In spite of constant reassurance from the government that everything will be ready by the kick-off in 2014, the average Brazilian still has a lot of doubts.

    Whilst there are some very big players working on the organization and infrastructure, corruption scandals in the past mean the people are still rather sceptical. Right now only two venues are complete, and the original budget has increased significantly.

    That said, there is also some good news for the people. Mano Menezes, the former Brazil Team manager, who had the backing of neither media nor fans, has been sacked, and replaced by Luiz Felipe Scolari. ‘Big Phil’ took the Seleção to glory at the 2002 FIFA World Cup, and the Brazilian people still regard him as a winner.

    What strikes us the most is that up until now almost every FIFA World Cup sponsor has been very quiet. The most active of the group is Brahma (the local AB InBev beer brand), which has launched a campaign to fight any ‘national pessimism’. The brand reminds consumers that Brazil is going to stage the biggest party in history, and that any cynicism or worries will be long forgotten. This activation featured in our list ofthe top 5 Brasilian sports marketing campaigns of 2012 back in December.

    Itaú, the country’s biggest private bank, also began their World Cup 2014 campaign last year, but have, so far, failed to create the same kind of buzz generated by Brahma.

    With the FIFA Confederations Cup approaching fast, and a new ticket sales record just set, it is clear that there’s palpable excitement amongst Brazilians about the upcoming events. We might like to criticize our country, but that’s just a cultural thing: most importantly, we are also very proud of hosting these global events. So, for brands there’s plenty of scope to take advantage of this warmth.

    For most Brazilians hosting the World Cup is a dream, and 500 days from now the dream will come true!

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  • Mascots, wasted potential

    This picture was taken earlier this year, at the Mascots Race, an event organized by the English Championship, Division 1 and Division 2.

    This event takes place annually and is part of a calendar to promote their social cause, which this year is prostate cancer. The 2012 winner, by the way, was Yorkie Lion, from York City.

    More than a nice promotion (it´s impossible to disagree that the mascots in the picture are really cute), it shows how lower tier clubs can articulate around their properties. Together, their appeal increases quite a lot.

    In Brazil, Esporte Espetacular, Globo´s main sports show, aired a “Mascots´ Olympics”, with the main Brazilian clubs, in 2010.

    There is also the mascots race in Olinda´s carnival, with the clubs from Pernambuco.

    Mascots have a great potential if embraced by clubs and/or sponsors. In Brazil, unfortunately, there aren´t as many good examples…

    Mascots Race via Futebol Marketing

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  • I want to see during the World Cup

    “I want to see during the World Cup” is a brazilian meme that express how people feel about the lack of infra-structure, politics corruption and general distrust about World Cup 2014. For example, if there is a problem in a subway station or at the airport, someone will say “I want to see during the World Cup”.

    The truth is that many brazilians don´t believe that we will be able to deliver a great event to the world. And, unfortunately, we have histortical reasons for that. In the end everything is gonna be alright, but the path has had its bumps.

    The news is that a group of social activists is trying to look from another point of view. They are launching a crowdfunded project called “I want to see in the World Cup”, which is an online platform that will congregate social projects from the whole country, showing how this World Cup can be good to Brazil. They want this to inspire new people and new projects.

    This kind of initiative shows an optimistic path for brands that want to talk about the World Cup in a more institutional and less sportive way. In other words, more about social development and less about the game itself. Yes, it´s possible.

    And you? What kind of Brazil do you want to see during the World Cup?
    (the video below is the project presentation, in portuguese)

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  • Lessons from London 2012 for Rio 2016

    Ativa Esporte has recently closed a partnership with Synergy, one of the most relevant sports marketing agencies in the world. During London 2012 we contributed to Synergy´s blog posting the view from Brazil of the Olympics.

    This is the third and last post, originally published on August 10th 2012.

    In the London 2012 closing ceremony, Brazil enjoyed the traditional eight minutes accorded to the Games’ next hosts  to symbolise the handover from London to Rio and present the spirit of Rio 2016 to the world. It was a great show with some Brazilian music and sports stars, and the overall reaction was very positive. Yes there were clichés like samba and carnival, but they also created a great mix of Brazilian traditional and modern culture elements.

    The spirit of the Rio Games evoked by Rio’s section in the London 2012 Olympics Closing Ceremony (Xinhua/Photoshoot)

    Those eight minutes marked the passage between the events, and now the Olympic flag is officially with Brazil. For us it´s time to look to the past, London 2012, to create the future, Rio 2016. What can we learn from the results to use in the next four years?

    Brazil won three gold medals as in Beijing 2008, along with five silvers and nine bronzes, a total of  17, two more than in Beijing. The women´s volleyball team, already national heroes, won their second gold medal in a row. But the other two gold medals were surprising, which created new Brazilian sports icons: Sarah Menezes in judo and Arthur Zanetti in gymnastics.

    Sarah Menezes on the podium after taking judo gold for Brazil at London 2012

    The silvers and bronzes also created new Brazilian heroes. Esquiva Falcão and Yamaguchi Falcão, two brothers, won silver and bronze in boxing, and Adriana Araújo took bronze in the women´s boxing. Those were the first medals in boxing since 1968 for the country. Yane Marques’ bronze medal in the final event of the Games was another great surprise, as the modern pentathlon is virtually unknown here.

    On the other hand Brazil also had some disappointments. The biggest one was the silver medal in men´s football. We had never won a gold medal in our most popular and successful sport and the expectations were very high. Silver tasted like iron. Swimming, sailing, equestrianism, athletics, and beach volleyball all disappointed too. As a result, the government announced $700m of investment in elite sport in the next 4 years with the ambition of achieving a top 10 place in Rio.

    “Silver tasted like iron”. Brazil’s footballers are distraught after losing to Mexico in the London 2012 football final

    Back to marketing, there is a clear path for sponsors to look fondly to other Olympic sports, besides football. Other team sports, for cultural reasons, have an enormous potential. Volleyball is the second most popular sport. Basketball was big in the past and is rising again. Handball and rugby are growing fast. And our London 2012 medallists also point the way for brands to sponsor less traditional sports like gymnastics, boxing, and modern pentathlon. And finally there’s acres of white space for companies prepared to embrace the unknown, and take ownership of sports that are almost non-existent in Brazil such as hockey and badminton.

    Be brave, Brand Brazil!

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  • How Brands are Activating London 2012 in Brazil

    Ativa Esporte has recently closed a partnership with Synergy, one of the most relevant sports marketing agencies in the world. During London 2012 we contributed to Synergy´s blog posting the view from Brazil of the Olympics.

    This is the second post, originally published on August 10th 2012.

    When we were thinking of what to write about how Olympic sponsors were activating in Brazil around London 2012,  we felt this post would be short! The truth is, for several reasons, this is one of the less activated Olympic Games here.

    Both brands and consumers seem to already be so focused on the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics that sponsors seem mostly to have passed on London 2012. And don’t get us wrong, brands do have a tradition of Olympics activation in Brazil. But this year, things are different.

    Here are brands in Brazil doing the best job of activating London 2012.

    P&G has used its ‘Thank You Mom’ Olympics campaign and is also activating at retail. Their message has resonated strongly with Brazilians’ hearts and minds.

    Coca-Cola re-edited a famous promotion from the 80s and 90s that gives consumers thousands of branded yo-yos, and made them Olympic themed. It’s a good move, but in our opinion a little conservative.

    Bradesco, the official bank of Rio 2016, is using Brazilian athletes. They have to think long term because their main competitor, Itaú, is a sponsor of the World Cup and is already using football strongly.

    Sadia, a Brazilian food brand, sponsors some Brazilian Olympic federations (judo, swimming and gymnastics) and created this video mixing sports with fantasy and videogames. For Brazilian sports sponsorship, it’s a very original approach.

    On the other side Burger King has fallen foul of the IOC by ambushing the Games using a promotion involving Brazilian gold medals. But ironically McDonald’s, the Games sponsor who objected to the campaign, are concentrating their marketing eforts here on an Ice Age 4 promotion.

    In summary, most brands here have failed to create something relevant to consumers using the Games. Almost every sponsor did some kind of activation, but, with a few exceptions, they’re not generating much buzz.

    Should they have used London 2012 as a link to Rio 2016? We think so. An opportunity missed.

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  • London 2012 – The View From Brazil

    Ativa Esporte has recently made a partnership with Synergy, one of the most relevant sports marketing agencies in the United Kingdom and the world.

    During London 2012 we contributed to Synergy´s blog posting some thoughts about brazilian point of view.

    This is the first post, originally published on August 2nd 2012.

     Brazilians on Copacabana beach celebrate Rio winning the 2016 Games (AP/Silvia Izquierdo)

     

    As well as the medals Brazil wins, we are naturally taking a big interest in London 2012 to see what we have to follow. We can’t deny, our heads are already in 2014 and 2016!

    Brazilians are following London 2012 in a very new way. For the first time in recent history, the Olympics is not being broadcast by Rede Globo over free-to-air TV. For those not familiar with the Brazilian media landscape, Globo is one of the top 4 media conglomerates on the planet, known worldwide for the quality of its delivery. It has also been the dominant media channel in Brazil for decades, regularly attracting huge nightly audiences. Brazilians joke that if something isn’t news on Globo, then it isn’t news at all.

    When the London 2012 broadcast rights in Brazil bid were tendered years ago, Rede Record made a daring move, outbidding Globo for the free-to-air TV exclusive rights. This was a huge development in media competition in Brazil, but it came with implications.

    Some athletes and sports governing bodies have complained (some more, some less vocally) that, despite alternating in the audience rankings between 2nd and 3rd places, Record’s reach is far smaller than Globo’s. So, in practical terms, London 2012 became less valuable as a marketing platform, so it can be said there is actually less engagement (natural or forced) from the media, and the public, than is normally the case with the Olympics.

    Before the Games, Rede Record tried to pacify stakeholders, promising a great broadcast. One week later Brazilians are engaging with the games, but not primarily via Record. On the first Sunday of London 2012, Record ranked only third among free-to-air channels in Sao Paulo with 1.1 million viewers, losing out to Globo, with 2 million, and also SBT, a more popular channel which is famous for importing Mexican soap operas, with 1.3 million. Terra’s free HD broadcast over the web is also helping Brazilians engage with the Games, especially during business hours.

    In this scenario, brands are being challenged to create alternatives to enable consumers to engage with the Games. Step forward – social media!

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  • What you need to know about Brazil

    Last week Ativa Esporte launched its new blog about sports marketing in Brazil and the way brazilians think sports marketing.

    But you can´t truly understand anything about the brazilian context without figuring Brazil out: the country, the history and our unique culture.

    You are probably expecting a bunch of sports marketing posts here, and they will come, but now we will make a recommendation for those of you whom want to understand the country deeper.

    Brazil for Beginners is an Udemy.com´s online course provided by Marshall Eakin, an american teacher and researcher whom dedicated his life to study the country. Now he uploaded his course for free on the internet and, as a brazilian, I can say it´s really good. Marshall really knows what he is talking about since he visited the country several times.

    So, if you want to understand sports marketing in Brazil, or anything else around here, just apply for this course and listen carefully.

     

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