Adidas at full steam to fight for Brazil
O Estado de S. Paulo
With an investment in marketing in Brazil 30% above the invested in the last FIFA Soccer World CupTM - the 2006 Cup in Germany, with record funds because it hosts the headquarters of the company -, Adidas do Brasil indicates its willingness to explore the largest window of soccer in the world. The South Africa FIFA Soccer World Cup, as recognizes Rodrigo Messias, Marketing Officer of the company, is a good test for the "war" for space that will be fought with archrival Nike in 2014. The perspective of Adidas do Brasil is to double the size of the sale of products aimed at the practice of soccer in the country still this year. For such strategy of growth to keep the current pace, it will be crucial to highlight its presence in the year the global dispute will be held in Brazil, in 2014.
Every FIFA Soccer World CupTM the sales of soccer-related products increase between 20% and 30% according to the projections of the company. In the case of Brazil, Adidas has been behind its major competitor when it comes to drawing the attention of the great public. After all, Nike has been the official sponsor of the Brazilian Soccer Team since 1997. The current contract will only expire in 2014, after the expected Cup in the country.
The Brazilian team is a global icon. Featuring its name in its uniform is priceless - say the advertisers, quoting a well-known slogan of the media, and the very Adidas knows it. "In the world, and especially in Europe that is the cradle of the soccer practice, Adidas is the leader, both in sales, and in brand awareness", says Paulo Ziliotto, marketing manager of Adidas in Brazil. "Data of the survey made by NPD Sports Tracking Europe regarding June 2009, show Adidas has 34% of the global market and 50% market share in Germany, where the company was founded".
The world leadership in sales, however, does not guarantee the visibility they would like to have in the country of soccer. Thus, as both the executives acknowledge, the dispute for the sponsorship of the Brazilian Soccer Team continues in the portfolio of ambitions of the marketing of the company. In the first week of June, a giant ball, with 15 meter in diameter, will be installed at the Eldorado shopping mall in São Paulo, to promote the South Africa FIFA Soccer World CupTM. "We will offer the experience of watching a soccer match in Johannesburg. We will reproduce the typical African colors and the noise of "vuvuzelas" that are long horns blown intermittently by the fans to cheer up the games", explains Ziliotto.
The amount invested has not been disclosed. Nearly half will be focused on the Internet. Adidas bet on that channel to captivate the public crazy for soccer with a rich history of participation in the Cups of the company. In 1954, Germany won the championship with its soccer cleats that caused a revolution in the sport.