Craft Sportswear is the manufacturer of IFK Göteborg’s team kit. Every year, a month before the Swedish football league starts, they reveal the new kit together with IFK Göteborg. An important moment for the supporters as it sets the tone for the coming season. The reveal is often referred to as “the first round”, as supporters all over Sweden compare and compete over who launched it best.

The brief was to come up with an idea that launches the team jersey, in a way that appeals to the supporters while creating buzz around the club and the approaching season. And of course, sell jerseys!

The budget was small, around 17.500€ total, so it was important to get the employees and supporters engaged. And since the media budget was non-existing, we had to come up with something that generated earned media.

Football jerseys are almost always launched in the same way: using the top players as models, with big expensive productions, and sold exclusively in the official club shop. But we decided to do things differently. The new team jersey was launched exclusively through small businesses across Gothenburg, owned by people who are passionate supporters of the club.

A powerful statement, proving that the club belongs to the entire city and its supporters. And a launch promoting both the new jersey and the supporter-owned small businesses. The club being city wide, added a touch of local pride and connection to areas all over Gothenburg.

Players come and go, but loyal supporters stay on the terraces for life. They know the clubs better than the clubs know themselves, making them a particularly picky target group when it comes to marketing, who prioritize authenticity and genuine connections above all else. Often forming tight-knit communities centered around their club, fostering a strong sense of belonging, camaraderie, and local pride.

We wanted to utilize the power of this community and bring the launch of the jersey into their everyday lives and favorite local spots. A launch that was not only about showing support for the club but supporting the city itself.

The campaign was launched with an online video and a social media campaign, together with a press release, where we presented the new jersey, the participating small businesses and where and when it was available to buy. For one week, the only place to get the 2024 team jersey, was through these small businesses, spread out across the city. All participating businesses promoted the launch on their channels to their followers.

Additionally, we put up posters all over the city listing the various retail locations. If you visited the online shop, where the jersey is usually launched, you got directions to all the different spots where it was available. By using authentic supporters and locations, the initiative was embraced instantly by the huge community surrounding the club, who helped spread the campaign.

The launch got instant media attention; local newspapers picked it up, as well as huge global football outlets. Social media mentions and engagement for IFK Göteborg went up by 216% compared to their yearly average. The supporters loved it, and various supporter groups shared it through their channels. It even got fans from other rivaling clubs to applaud the initiative.

All jerseys were sold out in a week, and when it became available in the official club shop, the sales went up by 141% compared to the three previous years. Traffic to the official online shop went up by 71%. Proving that the pre-launch strategy hade a huge impact on the overall sales.

It turned charming small businesses all over the city into physical reminders of the club’s wide presence and strengthened the position as “the entire city’s team”. Making it the most successful jersey launch ever for IFK Göteborg.