Challenge:
‘FIFA 18’ was going to
be a crucial videogame for Xbox. But our competitor, PlayStation, had bought
all the FIFA marketing rights. We couldn’t even show our own game packshot. So
how could we market a game we were forbidden from marketing?
Solution:
We leveraged
something bigger than videogame football – real football. In partnership with
Real Madrid and a top gamer, we translated every pass, every shot, every
possible combination on the pitch into the corresponding Xbox controller
buttons for ‘FIFA 18’. Across everything from audio commentary to pitchside
perimeter boards to newspaper match reports, this approach linked FIFA with
Xbox in the minds of gamers, without ever mentioning the game or contravening
the marketing deal. Every touchpoint didn’t just speak about FIFA – it made our
target audience better at it on Xbox.
Results:
- Over 100 million
impressions
- Reached 650 million
spectators per match (x 12 matches)
- FIFA unique player
base grew 10% year-on-year from launch through to Q