Qatar Airways is celebrating the universal language of football in its first “fun-filled and upbeat” FIFA World Cup campaign.
The airline has teamed up with singer and TV star Nicole Scherzinger to deliver an anthem “that is set to capture the hearts of fans around the world” as excitement for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia starts to build.
“There’s nothing quite like the World Cup on the horizon to put a spring in everybody’s step. This sense of fun and anticipation is perfectly captured in Qatar Airways’ first World Cup campaign, which features a re-recording of the classic song 'Dancing in the Streets' with Nicole Scherzinger – best known as judge on both the UK and US’s X-Factor. The result is an upbeat and infectiously fun-filled ‘musical’ style TV commercial,” the Doha-based carrier said in a statement.
The World Cup is set to bring fans from all over the world together in Russia this summer, and this new anthem from Qatar Airways “will unite them as never before. The catchy and uplifting song expresses the airline’s firm belief that sport is a universal language which has the power to inspire and encourage people to follow their dreams”, the statement notes.
Qatar Airways Group chief executive Akbar al-Baker said, “Our latest commercial expresses our excitement in being part of the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia, one of the most anticipated events on the global sports calendar. And we are delighted to have partnered with the extremely talented Nicole Scherzinger on this commercial. Nicole’s voice truly conveys the excitement we all feel in the run-up to the FIFA 2018 World Cup Russia, and captures our own enthusiasm about sports, as well as the power of an event like this in bringing people together.”
“Music is a force for good,” said Scherzinger. “Historically, it is one of the most powerful forces for uniting humans because it transcends language barriers. This particular song that we’re working on is so powerful and it has a strong message – it celebrates and unites.”
In May 2017, Qatar Airways announced a sponsorship deal with FIFA, which saw the award-winning airline become the official partner and official airline of FIFA until 2022. The partnership, one of the biggest sporting sponsorships in the world, gives Qatar Airways extensive marketing and branding rights at the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia and the 2022 World Cup Qatar, with an expected audience reach of more than 2bn people per tournament.
The agreement sees Qatar Airways become the official airline partner of the FIFA Club World Cup, the FIFA Women’s World Cup, the FIFA Under-20 and Under 17 World Cups, the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup and the FIFA Interactive World Cup.
Qatar Airways senior vice-president (Marketing and Corporate Communications) Salam al-Shawa added, “Like millions of fans around the world, we are getting ready for the best summer of football ever. We want fans to feel the fun-filled vibe that we have created with our new commercial and celebrate with us in the run-up to the World Cup. Our goal is to inspire people to dance, dream and be happy as they come together from around the world for this celebration of football.”
The airline’s partnership with FIFA builds on its existing sponsorship strategy with premier sporting clubs around the world. In March, Qatar Airways signed a five-year partnership agreement with leading German football team FC Bayern Munich, making the airline a platinum partner of the German club until June 2023.
Qatar Airways also recently revealed multi-year sponsorship agreements with Italian football club AS Roma, for which it will become the official jersey sponsor through the 2020-21 season; and with Argentinian football club Boca Juniors, for which it will become the official jersey sponsor through the 2021-22 season.
As part of a newly enhanced three-season deal with Formula E, announced in Doha in January this year, the airline will also be the title sponsor of the upcoming Qatar Airways New York City E-Prix, taking place on July 14 and 15.