Coca-Cola Going Mainstream with the World Cup

Coca-Cola has been an avid sponsor of the FIFA World Cup since 1978, however, most mainstream Americans have thus far been unaware of that fact. That is about to change. Coca-Cola is shifting their targeting in regards to the World Cup from primarily the Hispanic market to the general American population. This is consistent with the sports recent popularity among Millennials in America. Millennials grew up playing soccer as well as playing the latest version of FIFA from EA Sports. This exposure has allowed Millennials, myself included, the ability to grow an interest and passion for the sport. According to Reinaldo Padua, assistant vice president of Hispanic marketing for North America, Coca-Cola is running The Longest Celebration Contest in addition to numerous other advertising touch-points to reach out to the new market. “The contest is an opportunity for fans to upload their soccer goal celebrations to a continuous stream of videos from around the world,” says Padua. As a mainstream American in the Millenial generation I think this is a smart move. I have witness the growing passion for soccer over the years and think that Coca-Cola has picked up on the interest and potential vast exposure to a difficult to reach target.