Former Countdown host and legendary Football pundit Jeff Stelling will be teaming up with Carlsberg and its below-the-line marketing partners The Marketing Store to address the footballing nation on Boxing Day this year with a “King's Speech.” Whilst Stelling might not be actual royalty, he is debatably the king of Football (or at very least the king of Sky Sports), and will be presenting his speech as part of The Marketing Store's “Mid Season's Greetings” festive campaign for the lager brand, which is set to reach approximately 1.6 billion consumers over the Christmas period.
Behind The Scenes: The King's Speech with Jeff Stelling & Carlsberg Fan Squad
Stelling, who just so happens to be the official face of the Carlsberg Fan Squad, will be presenting his speech on that site's Festive Football Calendar on Boxing Day, a day traditionally full of big matches. The content was scripted, produced and developed by The Marketing Store, who view the speech as the pinnacle of their campaign. It's based around the psyche of football fans at Christmas, who view Boxing Day as an important day in the footballing calendar. With lots of important games and the January signings on the horizon, it tends to be a time when the summer signings stand or fall and the real competition begins.
Jeff Stelling will be teaming up with Carlsberg and its below-the-line marketing partners The Marketing Store, to address the footballing nation on Boxing Day
Whilst many of us will spend our Boxing Day recovering from the overindulgences of Christmas Day, there are thousands, nay millions of football fans eager to shake off their turkey hangovers and get up as early as 6am to trundle across the country and support their idols. This campaign aims to capture that rare passion with a speech that goes far beyond the usual statistical analysis, instead featuring Stelling's views on the game in 2014, the fans themselves, and what he believes will be in store for us in 2015.
#CarlsbergFanSquad: The Eternal Optimist Carlsberg TV advert
The film itself was produced by Irresistible Films and was shot in a single day at a luxurious London location. It was directed by Richard Pengelley, who is best known for his work on the Dave TV show Crackanory. It seeks to draw attention to the digital festival calendar, which was launched earlier in the month, and offers prizes, deals and exclusive content to users via Twitter and the Carlsberg Fan Squad online hub.
The campaign to draw attention to the digital festival calendar, which was launched earlier in the month and offers exclusive content via Twitter and the Carlsberg Fan Squad online hub
Dharmesh Rana, senior brand manager of Carlsberg, is “Really excited to have Jeff on board as part of this campaign,” and is sure football fans “Will enjoy his alternative speech on Boxing Day.” He said the campaign is designed to support the brand's customers “During this vitally important time of year,” and strengthen the brand's long-standing association with the sport. Sav Evangelou, executive creative director at The Marketing Store, adds that their King's Speech is “Yet another way for Carlsberg to play a role in football fans’ lives,” which he feels will form “An enduring record of another memorable football year that lives beyond advertising.”
Benjamin Hiorns is a freelance writer and struggling musician from Kidderminster in the UK. Whilst he wouldn't normally even consider picking up a pint of Carlsberg (as a stringent real ale fan), he is a big admirer of Jeff Stelling, so could probably be tempted given the right circumstances.
