ITV Sport targets heartbroken England fans

chris

ITV Sport's promo for its coverage of next month's Euro 2008 football tournament features an England fan heartbroken over England's failure to qualify, set to the strains of Foreigner's 1980s number one hit I Want To Know What Love Is.

The TV ad, which has been developed by the broadcaster's in-house ad agency, ITV Creative, will break during ITV1's coverage of the Champion's League final between Manchester United and Chelsea tomorrow night.

In the ad an England fan's love affair with the sport is represented visually by him taking romantic days out in the park and dinner for two - with a football.

However, the affair comes to a sticky end when the football is punctured after being hit by a car.

A voiceover then cuts in, featuring commentary from key moments during England's disastrous Euro 2008 qualifying campaign, which ended in defeat by Croatia at Wembley in torrential rain last November. Shortly after that game manager Steve McClaren was sacked.

In the ad, the fan is left distraught. The promo ends with the man walking through the streets in the rain, but then being cheered up by a colourful poster promoting the start of ITV Sport's Euro 2008 coverage on June 7. "The best cure for a broken heart," runs the endline.

ITV have created three versions of the trail – 60, 30 and 20 second versions – and tailored versions have been created to run in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

"The campaign brief was to speak to football lovers, share their initial disappointment in the lack of British representation, but celebrate the extension of the football season," said ITV.


source: MediaGuardian

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