BK Stevenage Challenge

Objective

Burger King sought to engage gaming audiences and build brand awareness among younger consumers without paying celebrity endorsers directly. The brand sponsored Stevenage F.C., a lower-league English football team, recognizing that their logo would appear in FIFA 20 videogame, reaching millions of gaming enthusiasts. The challenge was to transform a small real-world sponsorship into maximum digital impact through gaming culture.

Solution

Burger King launched the #StevenageChallenge, inviting gamers to recruit superstar players like Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi, and Neymar to Stevenage F.C. within FIFA 20 and compete with them on the pitch. Players scoring goals with these top stars wearing the Burger King logo were eligible for free Burger King food rewards. The campaign leveraged FIFA 20's in-game licensing mechanics to create a direct connection between gaming achievement and brand rewards, generating user-generated content showing famous players in BK-branded kits.

Results

The campaign generated tens of thousands of user-generated content pieces featuring world-class players wearing the Burger King logo. Stevenage F.C. became the biggest team online, and the campaign won a Grand Prix at Cannes Lions and a Gold Award at the 2020 Clio Awards.