McCann London

London

Xbox: The Everyday Tactician

Summary:

'The Everyday Tactician' was a first-of-its-kind initiative inviting gamers to apply for a job at a real football club, promoting the launch of Football Manager 2024 (FM24) on Xbox. One gamer was hired and used simulated game data and skills from his in-game experience to help Bromley FC achieve their best season ever.

The Challenge:

Football Manager is historically a PC game, but console is now the fastest growing platform, so Xbox is in a race to establish themselves as the first choice for gamers. The brief was to make Football Manager fans see Xbox Game Pass as the best place to play.

Insight:

Our approach was to focus our communications primarily on the community of passionate football and gaming fans, people who would be excited about this unique opportunity to use their football management skills in the real world. For Xbox to win fans in the community they needed to actually give back and do something meaningful. This approach gave the idea credibility and generated a massive amount of hype, helping the story break through from sports pages to front pages with earned PR.

Our Idea and Solution:

For the launch of FM24 on Xbox Game Pass, Xbox partnered with Bromley FC to announce a vacancy for a Tactician. The only way to apply was through FM24 on Xbox. Nathan Owolabi, a Football Manager fanatic, secured the job. Nathan brought his skills and experience from the game to the team’s backroom. His journey from gaming chair to dugout was filmed in a documentary on TNT Sports. His work helped the club secure promotion to the EFL for the first time in their 132-year history. Proving that a gamer can change the game of football. And showing the world of football a new way to recruit undiscovered talent.

Results:

· It was the most played Football Manager game ever

· Most talked about moment for Bromley FC ever

· Bromley FC had their highest league position, highest points tally and fewest defeats

· Most successful season in Bromley FC’s 132-year history.

We are the first to invite the football gaming community’s data pros onto the real-world football pitch. And people are jumping at the opportunity. Football Manager players are incredibly dedicated, so the chance for us to bridge the gap between the virtual and real worlds of football was an irresistible opportunity. When McCann London came to us with this idea, we knew we were onto something. The impact on the business so far has been fantastic. Since November’s launch we’ve seen a great uplift within Game Pass users for FM, incredible numbers that we don't see very often. This campaign has really captivated our key audience and that's why they've engaged with it more than we've experienced with other marketing campaigns in recent times. This collaboration has been a true partnership. We’re grateful to McCann for consistently exceeding expectations.
Mohan Gehlot, Senior Product Manager, Xbox

'The Everyday Tactician' for Xbox

The Everyday Tactician was a first-of-its-kind initiative inviting gamers to apply for a job at a real football club, promoting the launch of Football Manager 2024 on Xbox. One gamer was hired and used simulated game data and skills from his in-game experience to help Bromley FC.