Heineken invites fans to Get in the Game

Rugby legends and fans gather to kick off the final stages of rugby’s most exciting tournament.

As the Heineken Cup enters the knock-out stages and the journey to the final in Dublin begins in earnest, Heineken has unveiled a new multi-media campaign, encouraging people to Get in the Game. The Get in the Game campaign was launched to a packed house of rugby fans, players and legends in Dublin last night. Designed to bring the Heineken Cup experience from the pitch onto fans’ mobiles, computers and into pubs and homes across the country, Get in the Game offers a range of opportunities between now and May 18^th to get involved and be part of the ultimate rugby spectacle. Stars, Shane Byrne, Frankie Sheehan, Alan Quinlan, Bryn Cunningham and pundit Brent Pope registered to play Get in the Game and went head to head against the fans in the Virtual Kick Game.

Get in the Game will allow people to seize opportunities and react to a variety of digital and real life games for an enriched Heineken Cup experience – from getting competitive in their local to contributing to the online conversation, fans will be encouraged to be part of Ireland’s Heineken Cup final adventure at every turn. Rugby heartland pubs across the country will be transformed into competitive zones where fans will be presented with Get in the Game challenges at key dates in the lead up to the final. The online conversation will centre around #GETINTHEGAME where there will be opportunities to score points and win Heineken Cup final match tickets.

Fans can get involved with Get in the Game via www.heineken.ie/game or by stepping up to challenges featured in pubs throughout Ireland. Arcade-style games such as Conversion Challenge and Catch will be available to online players who will also have their Heineken Cup knowledge tested with quizzes and Match Predictor. It is all linked in one exciting system where the overall winner will receive a once in a lifetime VIP and back stadium experience at the Heineken Cup Final.

Karl Donnelly, Heineken’s Sponsorship Brand Manager, said: “Sports fans are increasingly looking for new and engaging ways to enrich the Heineken Cup experience. We have developed an innovative and multifaceted approach that lives on mobile devices, computers and in pubs. Wherever you are, you can Get in the Game with the aim of scoring points and winning prizes.”

As the eyes of the rugby world will be on Dublin in May, so much of this excitement and chatter will be channelled across social media. Heineken Get in the Game will be there to bring this into fans’ real world experience. Europe’s social media rugby conversation in the lead up to the final will be monitored and trends and topics shared via a spectacular real-life visual display on the streets of Dublin during Heineken Cup final weekend.

Karl Donnelly, Heineken’s Sponsorship Brand Manager, said: “Today, so much of the conversation around sports events takes place across social media. Heineken recognises how important this space is. We are utilising this rich conversation and harnessing it with visual animations and projections over the weekend of the Heineken Cup final. A custom built structure for this visual display will also provide an interactive virtual kicking game; fans can literally kick conversions which will, in turn, send tweets in support of various teams. A social sentiment project like this has never been seen before in Ireland.’

The Get in the Game campaign, launched in Dublin on Wednesday 27^th March, features new creative for outdoor, print and digital advertising. An exciting new TV advert will be released before the Heineken Cup final which will be played in Dublin on May 18^th.