PROBLEM: Once athletes graduated from high school, their competitive activity declined significantly, as did Gatorade usage and relevance.CHALLENGE: Reignite the competitive spark among these athletes, extending Gatorade loyalty beyond their high school years. STRATEGY: Fuel an opportunity every athlete dreams of – a second chance.IDEA: Last year Replay brought two original 1993 football teams together to replay a 7-7 tie. This year, as a testament to the universal appeal of REPLAY, the platform expanded.More athletes were given a second chance, as Season 2 restaged an unfinished 1999 Michigan-area high school hockey game, where a star player had his jugular accidentally severed by another player’s skate, a tragedy that almost cost him his life. Season 3 featured Chicago-area basketball teams, replaying a game from the year 2000 that ended in a last second play shrouded in controversy for more than a decade.

In 2010, REPLAY generated 581MM media impressions - +377% from last year. REPLAY has been featured on every major news outlet, including: ESPN, USA Today, CBS Sports, and Sports Illustrated, among others Demand for the REPLAY events was astonishing, as all tickets sold-out to the public – some in as fast as 11 minutes. The appeal of REPLAY spread globally – after other countries began demanding REPLAY on their turf, Gatorade will be staging new international REPLAYs in 2011. Thousands of athletes demanded a second chance of their own. In response, Gatorade created the REPLAY LEAGUE allowing any team to carry out their own REPLAY games with Gatorade support.

More importantly, all participants lost weight, reduced body fat and are living healthier due to the sports nutrition guidance provided by Gatorade.

The integrated campaign included a branded content documentary TV series, digital training tools, retail activation, PR, social media and grassroots marketing. Gatorade reunited long-lost teammates and re-immersed them into the world of sport. For eight grueling weeks, athletes trained with resources from Gatorade and sports nutrition guidance from the Gatorade Sports Science Institute. Short-form videos were seeded online, episodically highlighting elements of the REPLAY journey, including themes like pain, training and controversy. Gatorade also launched digital REPLAY training tools, including work-outs tips and sports nutrition counsel that any athlete inspired by REPLAY could access online to help them get into shape. REPLAY was also broadcast as a full-fledged TV series, airing to 95 million subscribers on the Fox Sports Network. The culmination of each REPLAY season was the big game, where returning participants stepped out onto sold-out stadiums to settle the score once and for all.