adidas Finds a Portal to Multidimensional Speed with the Help of Rick and Morty

adidas Football has launched its new X SPEEDPORTAL football boots, in a global campaign created by TBWA\NEBOKO that gives context not only to multidimensional speed, but also to the origins of the new boots. Joining some of the fastest players in the world, are a duo from another dimension, the intergalactic Rick and Morty.

“It’s one of these campaigns where you throw something at the wall early on, thinking it is going to get a few laughs and fall off, but it sticks,” recalls Toby Castle-Smith, copywriter at TBWA\NEBOKO. “But a few months later (and with the trust and support of our partners at adidas Football) we’re on weekly calls with the wonderful people at Adult Swim, and it all starts to come to life.”

“Consumers told us two things very clearly when we were building this campaign: one was that football is getting faster, but the other was that they felt there was room for sports brands to reflect the fun in the game. With these things in mind, we were confident that, collectively, this was a real chance to push the limits.” says Gonzalo Calvo, Global Director Brand Communication, Communities & Culture at adidas.

The campaign shows the interdimensional journey of the adidas X SPEEDPORTAL. Starting in the garage of one Rick Sanchez before gracing the International Unlicensed Cup and eventually arriving on Earth via a portal to adorn the feet of some of Earth’s finest football players.

The centerpiece of the campaign is a 90-second Rick and Morty adventure, created in partnership with Adult Swim and the show’s creators. Once again, Morty is at the mercy of another Rick idea, as he enlists the help of Mo Salah and Vivianne Miedema to create the X SPEEDPORTAL boots. Morty (with Mo and Vivianne) then put the boots to the test, with some multidimensional football action. Shortly after the final whistle, the boots find their way to our reality, ready for the rest of the campaign.

One of the key pieces that came out of this match made in multidimensional heaven, is the portal. Acting as a metaphor for multidimensional speed, the portal – developed by Post Panic – bridges between every piece of content, whether in animation, 3D or live action. In these live action player films, Mohamed Salah and Lionel Messi are also featured. 

“It was always important to us that the narrative weaved throughout the entire campaign.” continues Jeremy Pedro, Art Director. “As big fans of cinematic universes, no detail was too small when it came to connecting the dots. Every piece of content serves its own purpose, but when combined tells a much bigger story, from start to finish.”

Gonzalo Calvo added: “To footballers of all levels, our X franchise has come to be synonymous with speed, but one thing we know is that speed is not what it used to be. It’s not so linear and incorporates things like quick thinking and fast reactions. With that in mind we didn’t just want to make another football campaign around speed, in the traditional sense of the word.”

The adidas Football X SPEEDPORTAL campaign is launched globally. The :90 adventure is live on Adult Swim’s YouTube channel. Cutdowns of the film will also be shared across paid digital and social on both adidas and Rick and Morty channels.