The World Cup is officially underway, and it’s a big one for the sportswear giant Nike.
Under the leadership of new CEO Elliott Hill, Nike has been enacting a new strategy called the “Sport Offense” that sees the brand putting sports, teamwear and sports merchandise back in the spotlight. With soccer being the biggest sport in the world, and this year’s World Cup held partially in Nike’s home country of the U.S., Nike is going all out. Its plans include new products, in the form of collaborations with big names like Jacquemus, and a flashy marketing campaign featuring dozens of soccer legends like Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Ronaldinho, alongside celebrities like Travis Scott, Channing Tatum, Jason Sudeikis and LeBron James.
At a recent Nike event, Glossy spoke with Nike’s global vp of football (soccer), Camilo Andrade, about the unique opportunity this year’s tournament provides and his philosophy on how Nike is approaching the moment.
What’s special about this World Cup for Nike, especially given that it’s partially here in the U.S.?
“The biggest opportunity is that we believe in America. You have amazing infrastructure that promotes football at the early stages, but there’s a dropout of participation in the sport in the teenage years, when you stop playing. This moment helps us create a spike of interest and foster the next generation of footballers. So we’re working with our partners, U.S. Soccer and the National Women’s Soccer League on how we capitalize on all this energy around the moment.
