Historically, women’s sports have received less funding, support, and media coverage despite being equally as physically demanding, fast-paced, and engaging as men’s athletics. Female athletes face intense scrutiny and are often held to nearly impossible standards. Consequently, when they lose unexpectedly or even turn in a sub-par performance, it can lead to oversized media and public backlash, as seen this week when the U.S. Women’s National Team (USWNT) was eliminated from the World Cup. Rather than acknowledging injuries, coaching decisions, or that another team simply played better, some politicians and pundits blamed the soccer loss on the players’ political and social stances off the field.
In recent years, these issues have been brought to the attention of millions as the U.S. women soccer players filed a lawsuit against U.S. Soccer over the inequitable treatment of female players and former USWNT players became equal pay advocates.
Marcel, a French communications agency, creatively took on female athletic stereotypes in an ad for the 2023 Women’s World Cup, showing that effective communication and cutting-edge technology have the power to change the conversation. Spoiler alert: the ad went viral on social media.
To kick off the 2023 Women’s World Cup and build excitement around the upcoming games, Marcel produced a two-minute video that featured a highlight reel of what appeared to be top French male soccer players – such as Kylian Mbappé and Antoine Griezmann – scoring goal after goal. However, halfway through the video it was revealed that the exciting, skillful shots were actually executed by French female players like Sakina Karchaoui, Selma Bacha, and Amandine Henry, and the first half of the video was digitally manipulated. The video forces viewers to confront their own internal biases and question what may have led them to believe that women’s soccer is dramatically different from men’s soccer.
Resonating with many, the ad received millions of views on YouTube, and was the catalyst for social media content and conversations on every other platform as well. Since the video debuted in June, there has been a renewed media interest in the wage gap that professional female athletes face and calls for pay equity.
Not only did the strategic visual communication promote the upcoming World Cup games, but it also generated enthusiasm for a social issue impacting athletes around the world. It accomplished positive results for players and supporting organizations. By directly and cleverly portraying a common (though false) narrative, the video ignited a global dialogue about equality in athletics. The ad serves as a case study on the importance of communications in exposing deeper issues and changing perceptions. In addressing the social issues associated with the industry and event, the ad was able to build deeper, more meaningful connections between viewers, players, and the sport.
