Ouafi IDRISSI JANATI

Nike Football: World Cup 2010 South Africa

The athletic footwear industry is a highly competitive environment where the top four
manufacturers hold over 70% of the market share. The barriers to entry into the industry are
comparatively low, as anyone with new creative design ideas can produce and market their
product, but the success of smaller companies is oftentimes shaky. Brand loyalty, ample
capital, and broad based sourcing create an environment where the bigger companies such as
Nike and Reebok have little trouble maintaining market share.
Nike enjoys the largest share, with 42.3% of the nearly $8 billion market in the year
2000. Reebok was second with 11.9%, Adidas had 10.8%, and New Balance had 9.6% of the
market. The remaining 25% must be divided among the numerous smaller companies fighting
for a shot at survival.
The case study in hand is on Nike sports apparel and shoes, in this study the author has
reflected the 2010 FIFA world cup campaign of Nike.
2. Some of the foundations Nike has used to build its reputation as the leading manufacturer
of athletic apparel and footwear:
To build its reputation, Nike has used two different strategies.
- Footwear product innovation: Nike is known for the huge amounts it invests in innovation
and products development to make sure that their products deliver a performance-based
innovation to their customers.
- Sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR): Nike commits to reduce the use of
natural resources and decrease significantly footprint.
Nike took advantage from the big worldwide events, the annual world cups, to create, build,
and maintain their new capitalization brand image, which is Nike Football.
3. During the World Cup 1998, Nike created first Airport ad as a mass media
communication strategy where plenty of famous and well known football players were
featured performing, playing, juggling, dribbling, and free styling. Since the world cup was
mainly dominated by south Africa, Nike created for the first time its new boot concept
Mercurial especially for Ronaldo with a global idea to improve the way people play football
and help them to play with more fun, creativity, and speed.
4. Since 2000 Nike has chosen to use digital media as one of its primary channels for
marketing. Here are some of the examples of campaigns Nike has produced to connect with
consumers and grow brand awareness:
- In 2006 Nike launched in collaboration with Google Joga.com, which is a social networking
website for all football fans around the world in order to collaborate virtually and have digital
conversations and interactions about football. In five months the site signed up one million
members and it lasted many years after because it wasnt just a onetime experience.
-In 2010 as the world cup 2010 in South Africa was approaching, Nike wanted to connect
more with its customers creatively by connecting the digital world to the physical one. Nike
launched The Nike Football+ for their customers who are obsessed and oriented towards
football teams. This application enables Nike customers to participate in a 0-4 weeks training
regime to improve their football skills and receive video tips and training advice from football

Ouafi IDRISSI JANATI

Nike Football: World Cup 2010 South Africa

superstars as well. However, not anyone could have access to the application because it
requires a code that can be found only on one of the football footwear. Thus, customers have
to purchase a Nike product to take advantage of the application that works exclusively with
Nike products in order to the deliver the promised benefit.
5. Nike won the battle of the World cup 2010 against Adidas using the 5 pillars strategy it
chose to rely on. The five pillars strategy is as the following:
- Performance innovation: Deliver the best, most innovative, highest performing and most
sustainable products in football.
- Enablement innovation: Create new ways and tools for the FOT to become a better player.
- Connecting at a deeper level: Get under the skin of the FOT and have a continued impact
through any type of marketing activity that could serve the purpose of having the Nike brand
resonate emotionally with the consumer.
- Brand and business impact: Create a message that will open a dialogue with the consumer
beyond a sales increase linked to the World Cup. The strategy should foster lasting loyalty.
- Before the World Cup: Win the battle before the opening whistle even blows. View the
World Cup as an amplifier, not a goal as a means to an end and a moment in time.
6. Implementation of the five pillars to Aisha Company for its yearly Aisha des Gazelles
Event:
- Performance innovation: Provide the participants in the Rallye Aisha des Gazelles by the
best, (Maenga international events management agency: a highly experimented agency
whose purpose is to create and support innovative and unusual projects.), most innovative
(the Rallye Acha des Gazelles is the first off-road rally to use a satellite security
system (IRITRACK) that makes it possible for the organization to follow each team live by
satellite, 24 hours a day, and to ensure optimal security during the competition.), highest
performing and most sustainable(Every evening during the event, a "bivouac mechanics
workshop" looks after the vehicles).
- Enablement innovation: Create new ways and tools for Rallye Obsessed Women to
become better off-road driver by creating an online Rallye Aisha des gazelles game where
ROW can live the Rallye experience and also get tips and advice from the experts they can
email or questionate online. Create a social networking website dedicated to ROW in order to
create a community where women are getting to know each other, begin new friendships,
interact with the participants and benefit from their experience.
- Connecting at a deeper level: Get under the skin of the Rallye obsessed Women and have a
continued impact through any type of marketing activity that could serve the purpose of
having the Aisha brand resonate emotionally with the consumer: organize annual or
semiannual workshops or training sessions in different regions of Morocco that combines
between theory and practice to the benefit of women aiming to participate in such events and
name them the Aisha ROW days.
- Brand and business impact: Aisha supports womens daily success.
- Before the Rallye: Win the battle before the opening whistle even blows. View the Rallye
des Gazelles as an amplifier, not a goal as a means to an end and a moment in time.

Ouafi IDRISSI JANATI

Nike Football: World Cup 2010 South Africa