Yes, That's Snoop Dogg With a Lightsaber: BNET's 10 Best Ever World Cup Ads
The World Cup is not noted for its ads -- unlike the Super Bowl -- because there are no commercial breaks during the games. Nonetheless, sport, beer and soda brands often attempt to bring their best work to the venue at halftime and in the pre- and post-game shows.
It's a difficult assignment: Advertisers know their work will be seen dozens of times by fans who follow every game, right to the final. The key is create a confection that rewards repeat viewing -- something that most ads don't manage. Nike (NKE) and Adidas (ADDYY.PK) are the masters at this, as BNET's 10 Best Ever World Cup Ads list shows. My research shows that companies are indeed getting better at football ads as the years go by. Work from the 1990, 1994 and 1998 World Cup finals largely hasn't withstood the test of time.
Recently I crowned Nike's "Write the Future" spot as the best ever done, but a few days ago Adidas brought out its rival effort, and it's a corker, taking the No. 1 spot. Enjoy:
1. Adidas 2010 Adidas remakes the Cantina scene from Star Wars but inserts David Beckham, Franz Beckenbauer, Oasis's Noel Gallagher and others for a World Cup viewing party. The bit where Snoop Dogg pulls out his lightsaber is priceless.
2. Nike 2010 In this entertaining set of alternative universes, Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo becomes a Simpsons character while England's Wayne Rooney ends up homeless.
3. Nike 1998 The Brazilian national team get bored while waiting for a plane and turn an airport into their own personal practice pitch. Note the nice cameo by France's Eric Cantona. This ad, a sensation in its day, set the standard for future World Cup advertising.
4. Carlsberg 2006 What if England's retired legends played in a pub team? That's the fantastic premise of this ad which sees 1966 World Cup winners Jackie and Bobby Charlton, alongside coach Bobby Robson and ex-player Stuart Pearce, reduced to a Saturday morning kickabout in the local park. Magic.
5. Nike 2006 Terry Gilliam directed this testosterone-filled extravaganza in which players such as Totti, Van Nistelrooy and Ronaldhino compete inside an empty oil tanker and face being thrown overboard if they lose. Makes no sense at all, but Elvis Presley's "A Little Less Conversation" will stick in your head all day. (Cantona makes a return, this time as the ref.)
6. Adidas 2006 Two Brazilian slum boys pick a team of legends -- Kaka, Cisse, Beckham, Beckenbauer -- to play a pickup match. And then their mom calls them in for dinner.
7. Smithwicks 2002 Why is Italy's Toto Schillaci advertising this Irish beer? Maybe he needs the money. Nonetheless, a huge -- and subtle -- coup for the brand.
8. Pepsi 2010 Starts off as a string of "inspirational" African cliches and the viewer thinks, Oh dear, not another ad showing me how the World Cup brings us all together. But then the crowd conspires against Henry, Kaka, Lampard, Arshavin and friends as they play a pickup match on the veldt.
9. Stratos 2006 This ad for a Norwegian chocolate bar initially appears to be an ad for Vodafone's sponsorship of Manchester United, but the charming payoff comes at the end.
10. Budweiser 2006 If you like North Korean-style crowd coordination displays -- and who doesn't? -- you'll like Budweiser's stadium in which a giant mosaic of a beer bottle pours itself into a glass.
And finally ... In 2006, Pepsi made an ad for Germany that was so bad it's good. Beckham, Ronaldhino et al humiliate themselves at an Oktoberfest party that includes every cheesy stereotype, national and gender-based, the Germans have to offer. Own goal!
Related: