Some sunglasses, a bottle of water and Plátano de Canarias. That is what, according to Adidas, the footballer Pedri carries in his luggage to travel to the World Cup, as he shared in an Instagram post with which he kicks off the Football World Cup, which starts today, June 11, and is being held in Mexico, the United States and Canada.
The sports brand, through its division dedicated to football, has made a publication in which it imagines what the suitcases of some of the footballers who will participate in the tournament in the coming weeks are like. It does so through a very recognizable scene, that of the trays for objects at airport security checkpoints.
In this sense, the brand has taken as a reference a trend that has prevailed on social networks in recent months and that praises the objects that are placed on the airport tray as a form of self-expression. Romanticized and seen under a new light, the process of going through control is conceived as an aesthetic and “instagrammable” exercise.
Thus, it has posed a game to users, inviting them to guess which athlete each tray corresponds to. These show the shirts of each team, all of them designed by Adidas, as well as personal objects and symbols closely linked to their origin, their customs and their personal career. Among them, photographs, musical instruments, fashion accessories or mobile phones.
Messi, for example, is identified with a photo of his family, a glass of mate or a jar of dulce de leche; while Jude Bellingham is represented by tea bags or scissors, alluding to his habit of cutting the back of stockings. Rayan Cherki receives a photograph from when he was little and a boxing glove, for his love of this sport.
Two Spanish players appear in the brand’s publication. On the one hand, Lamine Yamal, whom he represents with a hair cutting machine and the kit of La Capital CF, the team that leads the Kings League. On the other hand, Pedri, with sunglasses and a Canary Islands Banana, which shows the deep association between the footballer and the Spanish brand, of which he has been an ambassador since 2020.
The relationship between Pedri and Plátano de Canarias has been going on for six years and will continue, at least, until 2028, under an agreement that was renewed at the end of last year. The collaboration is based, among other things, on the Canarian origin of the athlete and the fruit; in the brand’s commitment to long-term sports sponsorship; and in shared values such as closeness, humility and work, as Sergio Cáceres, Marketing and Communication Director of Plátano de Canarias, told reason.Why a few months ago, when we prepared a tour of the brand’s advertising career.
From Plátano de Canarias they understand the publication as the recognition, by Adidas, of the fruit as a representative icon of Spain and Pedri. “Along with the mate and family photos of Messi or the toiletries from Lamine Yamal, there is Pedri’s luggage and belongings, among which Adidas places the Canary Islands banana, a particularly significant choice, positioning the product as a recognizable symbol of Spain and the Canary Islands on a global level, at the same level as other national icons associated with the great stars of international football.“, they stated in a statement.
As can be seen in the image, the fruit also appears on the boots themselves. And Pedri incorporates an image of a banana, as well as the Canary Islands flag, at ankle height in his personalized Adidas Predator sneakers. This makes Plátano de Canarias something representative of the footballer both on and off the field.
The presence of Plátano de Canarias in the Adidas publication highlights the relationship with Pedri, and consequently, the value of coherent and long-term collaborations between brands and ambassadors. It also endorses and legitimizes the strategic positioning of Plátano de Canarias around sport. “It gives us the possibility of having more continuity, of having more windows in which to impact throughout the year without needing to promote new waves of advertising.“; Sergio Cáceres explained to us at the time. “The practice of sports and health care evolve and grow, that is an expanding territory in which the product fits naturally.”.
In this context, Pedri stars in a new installment of the brand’s new campaign, titled “You are like a Canary Islands Banana”, and designed by the Dentsu Creative agency, coinciding with the celebration of the Soccer World Cup. The footballer appears with the renowned brand label on his face, understood as a symbol of identity, quality and pride and, in this case, associated with both healthy eating and the national team’s World Cup challenge.
