Bundesliga wins over Chinese football fans with online 'Dreams' campaign
An online campaign by German football league Bundesliga inviting Chinese fans to submit their ultimate football dreams has attracted more than 50,000 responses.
The Bundesliga Dream campaign attracted more than 20 million social views
The Bundesliga Dream campaign, which aims to bring to life 15 of the 50,000 dreams, attracted more than 20 million social views and was the most participated campaign by any football organisation in China, according to the Deutsche Fußball Liga (DFL).
The dreams were realised with personalised video messages from players Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Philipp Lahm, signed jerseys from the clubs and two grand winners won a trip to Germany to watch a live Bundesliga match.
The campaign is part of a brand’s ongoing strategy to reach 500 million football fans in China.
Susanne Timosci, director of Interactive Media at DFL said the Dream campaign has engaged more fans with the brand than any previous activity by the brand.
“The Dream campaign is the next major step in our digital strategy in China. As with all our digital activities, we are putting the fans first, which is why we are excited to learn about their Bundesliga dreams and to see how the unparalleled Bundesliga fan experience impacts their everyday lives.”
The campaign was created by sports marketing agency Mailman.
Andrew Collins, CEO & founder of Mailman said the campaign’s “simplicity and ability to tap into Chinese fans emotions”, was the key to its success. “I haven’t seen a campaign with this level of mass participation before from a European football league or club,” said Collins.
Football is experiencing a huge growth in popularity in China as European football leagues invest heavily in marketing activity in a bid to boost awareness and engagement among China’s 1.4 billion people.
A report from earlier this year revealed The Bundesliga was the most influential league online in China, beating the Premier League, La Liga & Serie A. The Red Card 2017 report also found that Manchester United and Cristiano Ronaldo were the most influential team and player, respectively.