For avid soccer fans, having a significant contribution to their favorite team’s culture and organization can mean a lot. As eager as people are to attempt helping their favored soccer teams, it has never been a simple process and most contributions go unnoticed, leaving the fan unaware if they actually helped at all or just happy if they get a retweet.
Adidas recognizes this problem and has begun bridging the gap between players and fans with the Adidas Creator Studio. The creator studio essentially allows fans to design a third uniform option for their favorite players on prominent teams such as Real Madrid, Manchester United, FC Bayern Munich, Juventus, AC Milan, Flamengo, and Juventus.
“We are giving people a blank canvas and allowing them to create something exciting and unique,” Adidas’ general manager of football Markus Baumann told The Drum. “The Creator Studio is an opportunity for fans to become part of the history of some of the biggest global clubs; it’s a true first. We hope the idea of seeing their design on field next year, being worn by the players and by fans around the world, will fuel imagination and creativity.”
The 2017/18 third kit for your favourite club?
Design it yourself: https://t.co/jmYxFPAlRQ #FirstNeverFollows pic.twitter.com/Eb7s3b2pZl— adidasfootball (@adidasfootball) August 8, 2016
Adidas wanted to take this new creator studio one step further in making it more attractive to soccer fans. They decided to turn this fun design tool into a contest among many fans.
Users can design jerseys for whatever team they prefer, but if they are particularly proud of their design, they can submit it as a kit for the community to vote on. Once a design is submitted, fans will receive a special image they can share across their social media platforms to gather as many votes on their design as possible. The kits with the most votes will then be added to a list for actual professional soccer players to vote on. The best design overall picked by a panel of players and judges will be used by each team for the 2017-18 season.
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“Essentially, it’s about creating a deeper engagement with our consumer,” said an Adidas spokesperson. “So, by measuring shares we’re seeing how consumers are interacting with – and talking about – our content. We will also engage with their conversation so they feel even more part of what we’re doing,”
Whether or not a user’s design wins overall is not the main point of the creator studio. The innovators at Adidas simply wanted a unique way for athletes and fans to build a meaningful relationship.
“It’s an amazing opportunity for fans from all over the world to make their mark on their favorite club, and to be a part of the club’s history,” Real Madrid winger Gareth Bale told The Set Pieces. “Madrid fans are some of the most passionate in the world and I’m particularly excited to see what the club’s winning kit design looks like.”
With thousands of entries already submitted so far, this platform has certainly became an effective way for fans to connect with athletes. Hopefully we see even more creative contests from Adidas in the near future.