Between the Lionesses' big win at the Euros to the fast approaching World Cup in Qatar, the nation has well and truly been struck by football fever. So, as part of M&S Food’s Eat Well Play Well partnership with the home nations’ football associations, the retailer has kicked off a new campaign starring footballing legend Ian Wright to promote its latest Sparks competition.

The competition gives customers the opportunity to win a training masterclass with their England, Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland footballing heroes for their local school or football club. To enter, customers need to open Sparks on the M&S app, register for the competition by nominating their preferred local school or football club and scan their Sparks card every time they buy an M&S Eat Well product. 

The competition is designed to encourage customers to make healthier choices and promote the brand’s Eat Well products. The Eat Well flower is M&S’ health seal of approval which can be found on nearly 2,000 products in-store. The flower signifies products that meet ‘Eat Well criteria’ developed by M&S’ nutrition team, with input from the British Nutrition Foundation.

The more Eat Well products customers buy, the more entries into the draw. Winners will be able to choose which football heroes they’d like to train with, whether the men's or women's teams from England, Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland.

To promote the competition M&S has released a campaign film starring footballing legend Ian Wright. The emotive film aims to use the power of football to encourage families to make healthier choices. Ian Wright acts as a striking narrator for the film that uses a variety of different types of footage to create a nostalgic football feeling. Wright explains the issues around obesity and in an unpatronising way acknowledges that while people don’t need to fully give up their match day pies, making healthier choices will help them on and off the pitch. 

The film was created by Chief Productions and was directed by Yoni Weisberg.