Over the course of 4 weeks HOY by Havas slowly modified the logo of one of the most important football clubs in Argentina, Racing Club, to raise awareness of testicular cancer.

The campaign, titled ‘Shield against cancer’ saw HOY by Havas work alongside FUCA, Racing Club and Kappa to slowly modify the club’s logo to represent how small changes can be a sign of early-stage cancer.  The campaign brings to life the idea that ‘early prevention is the best shield against cancer’.

The Racing Club shield is made up of three straight lines. Over the course of the four weeks, the campaign saw the third line slowly, subtly modified with a slight bulge that grew over the course of the campaign to become more noticeable. For the first few days of the campaign, the modification went unnoticed in the first days, as it usually happens with testicular cancer. But, as the days went by and the bulge in the logo grew larger fans started to notice something was changing.

The club made the changes without letting fans know the reason and allowed conversation and speculation to build up online. Finally, in the fourth week of that campaign Juan Ramón Fleita, Racing idol and cancer survivor, revealed the mystery behind the bulge and explained that it was an awareness campaign about testicular cancer.

"For FUCA, this campaign with Racing and Kappa is very important because it allows a lot of men to talk about their bodies without taboos and to request information about testicular cancer.” says Dr. Matías Chacón of FUCA. “This analogy created with the Racing logo helps in reminding us that we have to take care of our bodies and pay attention to them; and if we feel any pain, we can talk about it. This behaviour and going to the doctor makes the detection and cure easier."

"People and their well-being are the pillars of our management. We are a club that prioritizes social responsibility. For this reason, anything that aims to improve the quality of life, as in this case the prevention of a disease, is something that we are committed to,” added Víctor Blanco, president of Racing club. 

The subtle execution of the campaign resulted in maximum impact online and led to 4 million social media interactions, huge media coverage in Argentina and around the world and most importantly increased testicular cancer mentions in Argentina by over ADY 594%.

By maximising on the power of football fandom to engage a predominantly male audience most affected by testicular cancer, the campaign shows how engaging with culture can create meaningful conversation.