- Campaign: #BRINGHOMETHEBUD
- Brand: Budweiser
- Agency: Wieden+Kennedy, New York
Why the campaign rocks:
Football and beer go hand in hand. So, when Budweiser forked out $75 million for an exclusive FIFA World Cup 2022 sponsorship, the last thing it was expecting was an about-turn on selling alcohol during the games 48 hours before the tournament.
At stake were a warehouse filled with a million cans of beer and thousands of unhappy fans. It was the kind of crisis that could have spiralled out of control, but Budweiser and its agency Wieden+Kennedy responded within a few hours with a single tweet that kicked off the audacious #BRINGHOMETHEBUD campaign — a promise to deliver the entire consignment of beer to any country that won the World Cup. Within days, all efforts pivoted to support the plan. From re-branding beer crates and teasing fans all over the world with free beer, to field boards, OOH adverts and social content, the new campaign rolled out in just 10 days. And immediately after Argentina’s victory, 1million Buds were given away via a direct-to-consumer strategy with parties in the country.
#BRINGHOMETHEBUD is by far one of the best examples of crisis management, PR, brand promotion and earned media.
— As told to Christina Moniz