The Beautiful Game Brings Fathers and Daughters Together for UEFA

On 20th September, UEFA will launch a new TV spot that will run across the 2018/19 Champions League and Europa League matches, finishing in the semi-finals in May 2019.

Building on the success of the ‘Together #WePlayStrong’ campaign which encourages girls to play football, this 30 second ad is aimed at fathers of daughters across Europe. It is designed to shift their perception about girls and women playing football and, ultimately, encourage them to promote the game to their daughters. It helps dads to realise that they can facilitate their daughters’ relationship with football, and that there are lots of ways they can encourage and support their daughters’ participation in the game.

Created by Sarah Lefkowith and Matt Hopkinson, and directed by FCB Inferno’s in-house director Alvaro Ramirez, the film will be supported by 6 and 10 second cut-downs across social channels and VOD.

Of the evolution of the campaign, Kayleigh Grieve, UEFA women’s football marketing manager says, “We launched our Together #WePlayStrong strategy over one year ago as a commitment to changing the image of football, making it cool for women and girls to play the sport. Our campaign has engaged over 5 million teenage girls alone on social media with content that shows the confidence, skill and togetherness the sport offers.”

The new campaign pulls targets fathers in particular – backed by some fascinating research from FCB about the role dads can play in influencing their daughters. “Academic research shows that girls can derive so much strength and confidence from playing football. And through our research we identified just how influential fathers can be in their daughters’ lives, particularly when it comes to football,” says FCB Inferno Chief Strategy Officer Vicki Holgate. “Many dads don’t realise the powerful role they can play in encouraging their daughters to start and continue playing. Who knows where a simple kick around in the back garden might lead…?”

For Kayleigh, the campaign taps into a growing sense of support among fathers for their daughter playing soccer. “With more and more parents, and dads in particular, becoming increasingly enthusiastic about their daughters playing football, the time is now to build on this momentum with our new TV spot and our supporting search, social and influencer campaign. From kicking a ball in the garden or watching local games on the television, football provides an opportunity for dads, sons and daughters alike to spend quality time together through their love for the sport.”