With multi-platform blitz, 6 language feeds, SPN all set for FIFA World Cup 2018

Move over cricket, it’s time now for world’s most favourite sport – football. As football fans gear up for the kick-off of the FIFA World Cup 2018 this Thursday, June 14, at Luzhniki stadium in Moscow, Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI), the official broadcaster of the tournament in India, is ready with its game plan to bring all the sporting action to its viewers. 

The network has already rolled out a campaign – titled #MeriDoosriCountry – which is inspired by countless Indian fans who exhibit their undying passion by adopting their favourite football team once every four years during the World Cup. The film showcases snapshots of fans cheering and flaunting their support for their ‘Doosri Country’ by wearing the team jerseys, waving their team flags and even painting their faces with their team colours. 

In conversation with Adgully, Kedar Teny, Head of Marketing & OAP, Sports Cluster, SPN, speaks at length about Sony’s extensive plans around FIFA World Cup 2018 involving TV, digital and other initiatives. 

How is SPN creating the buzz factor for FIFA World Cup 2018?
The FIFA World Cup 2018 is not only the biggest sporting event in the world, but one that is commonly referred to as the greatest show on earth. The whole world becomes one in celebrating this event and it is also popular in India. Our aim is to engage and include/ give a fantastic viewing experience to not just the core fans of the sport, but also the fringe viewers who tune in from one FIFA tournament to the next one. 

The core idea is to be present, heard and felt across multiple mediums and platforms. Everything will come alive through a comprehensive 360-degree plan on TV, Digital, OOH, Print, Mobile, In Programming and six language feeds to broad base and make the tournament more inclusive. Over and above this, to warm up fans and getting them acclimatised to the World Cup in Russia, we have curated content around the Teams and their history at the World Cup, the venues in Russia and other such initiatives to amplify the excitement. 

We have news to embed in the markets which do not have a strong football audiences, with the campaign we can reach out and appeal to many more people. We are going out to markets that we do not have our presence in, like the South. Kerala is already big in football, now Tamil Nadu, too, is beginning to pick up and so is Karnataka. 

Pre Event Programming
A line-up of shows has been airing from the 30-day countdown to the event. This is to get the fans warmed up before the Live action kicks in. The objective is to satiate the fans’ curiosity around teams, their history at the event, Best Goals, Best Saves, Key players to watch out for, etc. 

The Television films
As the pillar/ centre of the build-up, we have launched 5 unique and captivating films. 

Launch Film
The duration of the master brand campaign is 75 seconds, which highlights the passion and excitement with which Indian fans support their favourite teams at this mega-event. The brand campaign also explains what really happens to the football fans in India when the World Cup kicks in and how we pledge loyalty of another country. The film was shot across the country, especially in football crazy states like Goa, Kerala and West Bengal. 

Film 1 – Paying Guest (45 seconds)
The film explores the story of how a student from another state makes Goa his home for four years and how he becomes a patriot of his second country ‘Portugal’. 

Film 2 – Opposites (45 seconds)
The film showcases an endearing couple from Kerala and goes on to tell a story on why the wife chooses to support Brazil as her second country this FIFA World Cup. 

Film 3 – Tradition (45 seconds)
The film takes us through a touching journey of a football loving father and son through the years and how the patriotism for Argentina as the second country became a family tradition. 

Film 4 – Sachin Tendulkar (20 seconds)
The film starts with two sets of supporters chanting “Brazil, Brazil” and “Germany, Germany”, based on the chants Indian batting icon Sachin Tendulkar used to get when he played cricket. As the camera pulls behind to show the crowd and screen from the rear of the restaurant, we see Sachin (not in any country colour) emerging from the crowd. 

Other initiatives
Digital: Inviting UGC stories from fans
Outdoor: High impact print and outdoor campaign 

What is the core theme of the campaign for FIFA World Cup 2018?
Football over the years has emerged as a leading sport in India and has grown in terms of viewership in leaps and bounds. A closer look at the data suggests that there is a football viewing audience and then there is a FIFA viewing audience, which is significantly larger than the football viewing audience. 

FIFA World Cup 2018 Russia also provides a fantastic opportunity for more viewers in India to tune-in because of the telecast timings coinciding with India’s primetime. 

Our Aim:

• Is not just about communicating the Day, Date and Time of the tune in
• To capture the emotions of the fan at the heart of everything we do
• To showcase the sentiment of attachment, bond, friendship, love and nostalgia the country encounters/ embraces once in four years
• Enable viewers to embrace the FIFA fever and own it despite the fact that their own country is not represented in the tournament
• To make it even more inclusive than it ever has been before

Our Campaign:

Formal and informal conversations with fans, deep or fringe, the one common thread that emerged was the fact that once every 4 years, we become not just fans but patriots of another country. And this is the point from where the idea germinated and got its final articulation #MeriDoosriCountry. We already have around 20 million views on this campaign across all the digital platforms. The video view through rate is almost 75 per cent, which is beyond our expectations. It is such an honest campaign that the response that we are getting is actually very charming. This has also triggered different stories where viewers/ fans are sharing related to their connect with FIFA. 

We needed an idea that is inviting, an idea that is an earned media idea and #MeriDoosriCountry helped us built that. This is an idea, which is not just India specific but is also global in nature, that 175 other countries that are not participating will be embodying this in some form or the other. 

Apart from Vivo, who are the sponsors on board?
Hero, AMFI, Honda Motors, VW, Apple, Parle Agro, Castrol, Apollo Tyres, Uber, Indeed, Carlsberg, Amul, HDFC MF and Adjavis are our broadcast partners for FIFA World Cup 2018.

Could you share the viewership numbers for FIFA WC 2014? What kind of a leap in viewership are you expecting? Do you see the time difference between India and Russia impacting viewership?
As per TAM data, the total reach for the 2014 World Cup was pegged at 53 million. However, it will be hard to compare the two editions as the measuring metrics have changed. 

It’s not comparable just for the measurement metric changing, but also the fact that the FIFA World Cup is held every 4 years in a different part of the world, which has a direct implication on broadcast time. The change in timing for this year’s World Cup is more viewer-friendly as compared to the last edition. The more favourable the time, the better are the chances of a higher viewership. 

FIFA led events tend to enjoy an increased viewership due to their enormous popularity. This year, the live matches will be aired during prime time for Indian viewers. Matches start at 5.30 pm, 6.30 pm and 8.30 pm, which is like any other prime time. This is our opportunity to go out and gather more viewers to watch it. 

Do you have anything specific activities planned for football loving markets such as West Bengal, Kerala and the North East?
Yes, we are engaging with viewers/ fans in markets across the country. We want to engage and captivate the attention of not only core fans of the sport, but also the fringe viewers who tune in from one FIFA tournament to the next one. 

The good news for footballing fans across the country is that this edition of FIFA 2018 will be telecast in 6 languages – English, Hindi, Bengali, Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu. 

An ensemble of the best of international and Indian commentators has been put together so that no angle of the match goes unmissed for the fans. 

Which agency has worked on the campaign and what was the brief given to the agency?
Culture Machine is the agency behind the campaign. The creative team comprises Jigar Fernandes, Rohan D’Souza, Srijan Shukla, Sandesh Mangaonkar, and Jeremy John. 

The concept for the campaign was borne out of the common passion for the game of football. 

Our Brief: 

• Is not just about communicating the Day, Date and Time of the tune in
• To capture the emotions of the fan at the heart of everything we do
• To showcase the sentiment of attachment, bond, friendship, love and nostalgia the country encounters/embraces once in four years
• Enable viewers to embrace the FIFA fever and own it despite the fact that their own country is not represented in the tournament
• To make it even more inclusive than it ever has been before