Cannes Lions

Up Your Game

MJZ, Los Angeles / BLEACHER REPORT / 2018

Presentation Image
Film
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Overview

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Credits

OVERVIEW

Description

We open on a teen throwing away a sports section. It catches fire mid-air - symbolizing

the death of the old guard. He then challenges the viewer on their fandom, asking “You

think you get the game? Of course you do. But you have to get...”

We then follow a “narrative” relay, each narrator testing you with an insider reference –

be it haircuts, race, shoes, celebrations, disses, tributes, and more. From sneaker icon

Benjamin Kickz, to culture legend Allen Iverson, to movie Shameik Moore, to beloved

athletes like Marquette King, this film is a recruitment test.

Execution

The newspaper reads “The Earth May Be Flat”, referencing Irving’s statements. The

barbershop stars a real student suspended for having OBJ’s hairstyle, and Antonio

Brown’s “Lego” cut. The baseball kid does the biggest flip ever, referencing Bautista’s

controversy. Ben Kickz in a car overflowing with shoes boxes (reselling culture). The

moment of silence for icon Craig Sager. The cupcake is Westbrook’s diss of Durant.

Iverson clears up his “Practice” rant 15 years later. Marquette’s dance is how the NFL is

the No Fun League. The “Posse” hoodies are about Phil Jackson’s racially charged

comments about LeBron. Iverson’s famous step-over on T.Lue. The #16 represents

Dee Gordon’s homer for Jose Fernandez. And much more.

Outcome

In 24 hours, the campaign broke B/R’s record for the most traffic with 14.2 million visits from 8 million different people, and received mentions from athletes and influencers (Brandon Jennings, Charles Barkley, Pete Rock, and more). The campaign got a 20% increase in monthly app installs and 200k new active monthly users. Unique for its voice, the athletes featured, the way it depicts culture, and how it was launched, it became the #1 most downloaded app in the sports category. More importantly, it showed that the campaign was doing something our rival sports media companies can’t do: talk to and represent the new and future era of sports fandom. And this is just the first step in its takeover of sports media.

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