Small dogs are especially appreciated for their vitality, energy, and playful attitude, which must be nourished and protected through a specific diet based on their needs, that differ from those of bigger dogs. Ultima Mini is a specific range for dogs below 10kg of weight by Ultima Petfood, developed to assure them of the right amount of nutrients and energy. The aim of the campaign was to prove in an innovative and entertaining way how a correct nutrition does positively affect small dogs’ vitality and keeps their spirits and playfulness high.

When small dogs are healthy and well fed, they have the energy they need to express their vitality.

And one of their absolute favorite activities to do that is chasing balls. That’s why we made it possible in the most spectacular way, by letting a small dog chase an especially fast and relentless ball: the one bouncing around the pitch of a Serie A football match.

All Italians love watching football, but small pet owners even more so: the affinity of this target with live sports events is higher than the population average (9% above average in the stadium; 6% above average in TV. Source: Hoda Wekosmos).

Besides, pet owners follow with attention sponsors on the sideline LED or billboards (15% above average. Source: Hoda Wekosmos). Knowing that, we decided to leverage side field LED displays in an innovative and disruptive way contextualizing the communication with the gameplay to be sure the activity would be seen by the supporters.

Multiple times over the course of the 90-minute Italian Serie A soccer match between Empoli and Spezia, on Saturday 9 April, the 105 m long sideline LED panels of Stadium Carlo Castellani featured a 3D-animated Jack Russell busy chasing live the ball kicked around the pitch. His runs and turns were accompanied by the line Ultima Mini. For small dogs full of energy always present on the panels. Since the software that animated the dog was active during the whole game, we managed to make our small dog run even during other brands airtime achieving further visibility.

Transforming a rather static and purely brand-display driven media into a live show inside the show, we engaged the 10,000-people stadium crowd and 320.000 viewers at home.