Heineken Transforms Laundromats into 24-Hour Sports Bars in Partnership with LePub APAC

Heineken and LePub APAC are turning 24-hour laundromats into all-night sports bars so that Korea’s most dedicated football fans now have a place to watch the UEFA Champions League.

The idea was inspired by the realisation that Asia is home to some of the world’s most hardcore football fans – so devoted, they’ll wake up at 3am or 4am to watch UEFA Champions League games live. It’s difficult to watch UEFA Champions League matches together with friends in Korea because most bars are closed at this time. Home might not be the best place to cheer on teams with friends at 4am, either.

So, Heineken teamed up with LePub APAC to devise a simple yet ingenious solution: in partnership with WashEnjoy, one of South Korea’s largest laundromat franchises, it is turning 24-hour laundromats into 24-hour sports bars at locations across the country. When bars are closed, now there’s a place for the real hardcore fans to get together and enjoy the UEFA Champions League.

“Heineken believes that being a ‘real hardcore’ football fan isn’t about how you look, it’s about how you behave – anyone who wakes up at ridiculous hours to watch their team, names their pets after their icons, or wears their lucky pair of socks during matches qualifies as hardcore. We wanted to celebrate Asia’s fans who truly live and breathe the sport in a positive, sometimes quirky way. And what could be quirkier than staying up all night to watch the UEFA Champions League at a laundromat?” explains Giwoun Park, marketing director at Heineken Korea.

Cyril Louis, executive creative director at LePub APAC, added, “You may think the world’s most passionate football fans are based in Europe or Brazil, but they can actually be found in all corners of the world – cities like Seoul, where fans are crazy enough to stay up all night to cheer on their team. We had the crazy idea of using laundromats to recognise the efforts of these fans and celebrate them with Heineken®. When bars are closed, now there is a place for Korea’s real hardcore fans: 24/7 laundromats, transformed by Heineken into go-to venues for enjoying match day with friends.”

The campaign, called ‘LaundroMatch’, launched at 3am (KST) on 10-11 April with two consecutive events, when fans flocked to WashEnjoy in Seoul to watch teams compete. Four all-expense paid trips to the final UEFA Champions League 2024 match on 1 June were also up for grabs: a dream-come-true experience.

From now until June, South Korea’s real hardcore fans will be able to scan QR codes found at WashEnjoy laundromats nationwide to access complimentary 30-day SPOTV subscriptions, so they can enjoy the UEFA Champions League quarter and semi-finals at a nearby Heineken LaundroMatch.

As a long-time sponsor of the UEFA Champions League, Heineken recently launched a global campaign called ‘Cheers To The Real Hardcore Fans’ in February 2024, which redefines what it means to be a “real hardcore fan” in an effort to make football more inclusive.

With the launch of ‘LaundroMatch’, Heineken is bringing the ‘Cheers To The Real Hardcore Fans’ platform to Asia with the goal of connecting with a wider range of fans worldwide and making Heineken the global beer of choice during the UEFA Champions League.