Liga MX US Launch Campaign
Client
Liga MX
Agency
FCB Chicago
Role
Senior Designer
Background
Liga MX wants to build a following in the United States.
The top professional division of Mexican football, Liga MX consists of 18 clubs from around the country. The league is known for being very competitive as it sits 14th in the world confederation rankings.
While football is the most popular sport on the planet, it has been on the rise in North America over the last several decades with more fans being introduced to the game and more funding being committed by sponsors to gain the attention of said fans.
The league partnered with FCB to appeal to and attract a new audience of football fans. With a goal of highlighting the rich history of Mexican football culture, FCB created a variety of assets for Liga MX including evolved branding and a complementary design system, as well as ads, brand acts, and more, all within a fresh new identity that tied the campaign together via the league’s various online and out-of-home channels.
Brief
Introduce American sports fans to Liga MX and get them invested in its matches.
The client asked FCB to build a campaign that worked in three phases, with the initial goal to introduce Liga MX to those in the States not yet privy to it, and the ultimate goal to foster investment in the league as supporters. Longevity of the concept was incredibly important, as the platform needed to be able to stretch across each phase of the campaign and ensure the idea remained intact with every execution.
Phase one: Introduce Liga MX.
Tell American sports fans what this league is all about, grab their attention, and spark their curiosity.
Phase two: Get fans to watch.
Drive people to tune in to games—and tournaments like the Leagues Cup—via the Liga MX landing page.
Phase three: Drive engagement.
Get American sports fans to embrace and be a part of Liga MX culture.
Concept
Liga MX matches are known for being particularly rowdy and raucous in nature, with the passion from supporters jumping right out of their seats—or through their screens—and onto the field. It’s not only captivating, it’s infectious. When you fall in love with the league, it becomes a part of you; it transforms you.
As Liga MX launches its campaign in the US, Americans are about to find out that real fútbol will change you. Because you don’t just watch Liga MX, you live it.
Vive Liga MX.
Note: “vive,” meaning “live,” in Spanish.
Design system
The particular challenge for the evolved design system was that it needed to accomplish a few things at once. It needed to build on the existing brand while specifically addressing this moment and this brief, work well when paired with each club’s own brand and stand up on its own, and make content that’s rooted in Mexican football culture both exciting and digestible for non-Spanish speakers.
Our solution leaned into vibrant color, bold type, and explosive graphics; in order for all of those elements to work harmoniously, the system needed to also establish clear rules for how to use them together to stoke interest in but not overwhelm the viewer. Background textures and graphic elements bring an explosive energy that communicates the passion and excitement present at Liga MX matches. The variable type not only creates a flexible type system, but when repeated at varying scale and in complementary color, mimics the vocal nature of supporters. And finally, the logo remains consistent to retain established brand equity, though its colors inform a new system of color use.
Out-of-home
The campaign’s out-of-home executions are intended to catch people in the midst of their commute, injecting some energy into the mundane and sparking curiosity around Liga MX. With the goal to grab attention and introduce the league, billboards, posters, murals and more direct viewers to Liga MX online via their website, social channels, or ticketing platforms.
OOH transformations
Some of the out-of-home activations had the opportunity to very clearly connect to the transformational quality of this brand positioning. The subway train wrap invites commuters to literally step in to the world of Liga MX, while the scannable mural acts as a virtual portal into it.
Social
The campaign included a complete social takeover, filling feeds with game highlights, fan reactions, and showcasing all of the ways Liga MX has the power to transform audiences. With the goal to drive viewership, all social executions direct users to the Liga MX game hub where they can easily see when the next match will air.
Carousel posts stoke interest with graphics that bleed from one slide to the next, ultimately prompting the user to start watching.
Social blitzes highlight fan gear and feature important matches or upcoming tournaments like Leagues Cup, inspiring users to “give in to the game.”
TikTok
Liga MX social channels highlight Liga MX Femenil matches as well because when you fall in love with this league, you crave Liga MX all the time.
Future state
We also explored a future state where the campaign could extend to other placements like the digital game hub and even wearables like fan gear and club jerseys. The team wrote scripts, built brand acts, and ideated around influencer partnerships to round out the campaign that would create more opportunity for Liga MX to be a part of the American social conversation and encourage American sports fans to not only embrace, but also participate in its explosive and vibrant culture.
Digital game hub banner
Club jerseys
Podcast partnership
Brand act coverage
Team
Patrick Futtner, CD Art
·
Anastasia Guletsky Kelly, ACD Copy
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Kevin Lee, ACD Art
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Jessica Farac, ACD Copy
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Jess Cohen, Senior Designer
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Mike Otero, Senior Art Director
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Jenny Kim, Designer
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Ian O'Saben, Design Director
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Jorge Bauzá, CD Art
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Paul Carpenter, CD Copy
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Patrick Futtner, CD Art · Anastasia Guletsky Kelly, ACD Copy · Kevin Lee, ACD Art · Jessica Farac, ACD Copy · Jess Cohen, Senior Designer · Mike Otero, Senior Art Director · Jenny Kim, Designer · Ian O'Saben, Design Director · Jorge Bauzá, CD Art · Paul Carpenter, CD Copy ·