Generations of Girls Realise Their Sports Dreams with Canadian Tire

The 2024 Paris Olympics are shaping up to be the first Olympic Games to feature the same number of male and female athletes, showcasing that the world has taken strides in the right direction for women’s sport to finally stand on the platform it deserves.

As a long-term Team Canada partner and the first Canadian company to make a 50/50 sponsorship commitment in women’s professional sports through its Women’s Sport Initiative, Canadian Tire’s Believe in Her campaign, launching on July 26th, reflects their focus on driving positive change from playground to podium.

At the heart of the campaign is the hero film entitled Next Legend. The spot features an infant and celebrates how the work done by allies of women sport will help her and future generations of girls realise their sports dreams. The campaign builds on the brand’s iconic We All Play for Canada platform, an expression of Canadian Tire’s commitment to enabling and celebrating the power of sport and play in bringing people together. The spot features the voices of prominent Canadian sportscasters, Jim Hughson (ENG) and Pierre Houde (FR) over the iconic sports anthem, Eye of the Tiger, best known for its role in the original Rocky film. Both the track and VO are carried across the campaign, including social and supporting TV/OLV spots.

The campaign includes notable media integrations with CBC, TikTok and The Gist, the latter which shares the brand’s commitment to equitable coverage of sports. CBC content will highlight top Canadian women in sport moments as they play out real-time in Paris. The  TikTok program reprises the viral 'How It Started vs. How It’s Going' trend to tell the origin story of Canadian Tire partner athletes as they grew to be Olympians and Paralympians. Athletes featured include Aaliyah Edwards, Aurélie Rivard, Jacqueline Simoneau, Kia Nurse and Skylar Park. The program also includes content creators from all walks of the sports industry, whether it be broadcasters, coaches and former athletes, who share their own journey and how far they’ve come.  

“We are so proud to celebrate both our partnership with Team Canada and our longstanding commitment to a more equitable sports landscape in Canada. Our campaign establishes a clear role and message for our brand, and an opportunity to authentically connect the games back to our purpose – We Are Here to Make Life in Canada Better,” said Jonathan Anderson, associate vice-president, strategic marketing, Canadian Tire.

“We built our spot around a baby with a world of sport potential, who is revealed to be a girl (and maybe a future gold medallist). It’s a rare opportunity to help Canadian Tire build upon a movement as powerful as supporting women in sport. We are so excited for this work to widen eyes and encourage girls to pursue their sports dreams,” said Andrew Hart, creative director, Leo Burnett.