Featuring more than 30 stars, the campaign breaks down into several spots across different Asia-Pacific markets, including Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, tennis player Peng Shuai and footballer Ma Xiaoxu from China, Tsuyoshi Nishioka, a baseball star from Japan, and swimming star Ian Thorpe from Australia.
Other global spots running regionally feature footballers David Beckham and Lionel Messi, as well as basketballer Gilbert Arenas.
Broadly, the campaign is aimed at ensuring adidas keeps the heat on Nike.
“It’s for each athlete to give their own personal account of a big event that has defined or changed their life,” said Celine del Genes, adidas Asia-Pacific communications manager, marketing and sales.
The athletes draw themselves on a glass wall, with each figure then coming to life through animation to tell a key story. Beckham, for example, reminisces about the disappointment of being sent off during the 1998 World Cup finals.
There are also more human elements, such as a struggling young football team’s elation at finally scoring a goal after countless thrashings, in a bid to resonate with non-professional athletes. “We wanted to make the brand more accessible to everyone. We never see the difficulties, the failures, the things they had to overcome,” said del Genes.
While spearheaded by television, the campaign is also supported by print, online and POS activation. The online component includes TVCs and artwork from the campaign, mini-games and a channel which allows consumers to create their own ‘Impossible is nothing’ submissions.
Adidas has also partnered with MSN to build an online community as adidas-branded blogs on MSN Space, which includes content from the athletes themselves.
