“We will make it to the last four,” promised Jogi Löw ten years ago before the World Cup quarter-final against France with dampened ambition. Even after the “Mannschaft” had sent the Brazilian hosts into a national nervous breakdown every five minutes, Toni Kroos reminded us: “Nobody has ever been world champion in the semi-finals.” In the end, it was enough to win the World Championship title, and that was something to celebrate.
“Underpromise, overdeliver” is an honorable attitude, though not one that wins pitches (I know what I’m talking about). In this country, “Think Big” might apply to beer measures or airport costs. High expectations and big promises only certify arrogance and create pressure.
Adidas also addressed this topic in its international campaign for this year’s European Championships: “You Got This”. To the galloping groove of the song Under Pressure by Queen and David Bowie and accompanied by thunderous fan euphoria, a 90-second montage celebrates the triumphs of the soccer millionaires.
If only it were that simple. In fact, as David Beckham says in the background, the dreams of an entire nation rest on players like Bellingham, Pedri and Wirtz. How do you deal with this mental burden? Adidas knows: “The pressure to live up to the expectations of others can make many things seem unattainable. But if, like Florian Wirtz, you manage to turn this pressure into fun, joy and self-confidence, you can beat any opponent.” Burnout Syndrome: Solved!
Adidas has dedicated a separate commercial to this campaign for the UK, in which Jude Bellingham is supposed to lead the nation out of the apparently traumatic defeat in the 2022 World Cup semi-final. A prophecy that was almost sealed in the round of 16, even if it wasn’t enough for the title in the end. Only the sound engineers who distorted Paul McCartney’s voice on the background song “Hey Jude” should be banished to an endless loop of Yoko Noo albums.
For Germany, however, Adidas had a more important topic at hand: jerseys. And our narcissistic love-hate relationship with German identity. Like no other nation, we are obsessed with our own image and the clichés associated with it. But always with self-irony, please. Let someone dare say again that we have no sense of humor! The entertainingly produced spot “Typically German” takes the mickey out of our own stereotypes such as punctuality, while diversity, Späti culture and the song Major Tom are celebrated as the unofficial European Championship anthem. In the same vein, the counter-video to the pre-programmed outcry about the pink away shirt was ready suspiciously quickly.
The only problem was that our charming joke didn’t interest anyone abroad. It’s typically British that the BBC prefers to deal with the annoying fly in the ointment that the lettering on the originally customizable shirts invited people to order the SS rune with the jersey number 44.
And just because we self-deprecatingly admit that not everything always runs on time here is no reason for the New York Times to take a closer look at the inadequate logistics surrounding the European Championships in Germany. Our need for recognition is met with a stubborn response from the German media, with the New York Times “blaspheming” and “tearing down” the German European Championship.
Speaking of the USA: What has Nike actually been doing all this time, apart from snatching away Adidas’ status as supplier to the German national team? Without any pseudo-mental-health twist, their commercial “Awaken Your Madness” is fully committed to the literal madness of grandeur. And I’m here for it.
The dogged obsession you have to have to get to the level of Haaland, Vini Jr, Ronaldinho and Mbappe is perfectly staged: darkly bizarre visuals, hectic cuts, pulsating soul beats with the frenetic voice of Screamin’ Jay Hawkins on the song “There’s Somethin’ Wrong With You”.
Maybe Nike and the DFB are a better match than some people think. At least the new national coach Julian Nagelsmann found similarly feverish, uncharacteristically big-thinking words after the defeat against Spain to fire up the team for the next tournament: “It hurts that you have to wait two years to become world champions.”
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