You can be forgiven for thinking that the Super Bowl is the biggest sporting event in the world, but that title belongs to the World Cup taking place later this year in Brazil.
This point was not lost on the team at OverDog, who decided to link the two mega-events with “The OverDog Football vs. Futbol Series,” which will launch the day before the Super Bowl. The first installment of the series will see New Orleans Saint and Super Bowl XLIV champion Will Smith 2002 Hermann Trophy winner and 2003 MLS Draft #1 overall pick Alecko Eskandarian, New York Cosmos midfielder Danny Szetela face off in EA Sports’ FIFA and Madden.
“Football vs. Futbol” is at the heart of OverDog’s mission to deliver “wow” experiences by connecting athletes and fans via video games. Championships, all-star games and league drafts are “the moments when fans and athletes are living and breathing their sports the most, and when they are most likely to be playing video games,” says OverDog Chief Product Officer Thomas Bernstein. “Our OverDog team tries to tie fan experiences and programming to these types of events.”
This kind of cross-over event goes one step further, connecting gamers – both fans and athletes – beyond the boundaries of their preferred sport, and is doing so in a way that links two of the three largest sporting events of the year. Bernstein notes that their users do not limit themselves to only engaging with sports or athletes that they already support.
“We’ve seen something interesting in the app. For most fans, there is a thrill to playing any athlete, anyone who has climbed to the ranks of ‘professional,’ regardless of the sport. We have diehard football fans that accept Call of Duty challenges from pro soccer players and the fans end up following those athletes afterwards. We think this cross-pollination of interest is fantastic for everyone involved: for the sport and especially the athlete.”
The athletes over on OverDog share the company’s vision and concept of how video games can connect them with their fans. According to Bernstein, it boils down to the Three C’s:
- Convenience: Nearly three-quarters of athletes play video games in their downtime, making OverDog a way for them to make personal and memorable connections with their fans without changing their existing behavior.
- Comfortable: Athletes can make these connections with their fans from the comfort – and privacy, and safety – of their own home. If the athlete encounters a fan who is not respectful, he can simply turn off his headset or close out of the game entirely. No bouncers, no body-men, no worries.
- Competitive: “When many of our athletes leave the field, they have a hard time turning off the desire to face off against an opponent. Hopping in a game with a fan feeds that hunger – often in hilarious fashion with some Twitter trash talk on the side.”
OverDog has partnered with Steel Series to introduce their headsets and other products to OverDog’s athletes, ensuring the athletes and fans have the added touch-point of chatting during the game. “Football vs. Futbol” takes the project one step further by adding video of facial expressions, body language and fist pumps into the mix. “It’s all the things you love about being next to your buddy in the living room when you’re beating him up in Madden. Video humanizes the athletes even more, and our fans absolutely love experiencing that.”
“Football vs. Futbol” will kick off at 3pm EST at the KickTV Studios in Manhattan, and will be live-streamed via TwitchTV. The series will continue to pit football and soccer players and fans against each other in the run-up to the World Cup in June. To get in the game, download the free OverDog app and #GameOnOverDog.