In 2021 Heineken made a commitment; to be the most inclusive sponsor in football.
With two-thirds of women in football having experienced gender discrimination, Heineken® evolved its sponsorships in sport to address the uneven playing field.
In its 25th year of UEFA sponsorship, Heineken added to its portfolio of the Men’s game including UEFA EURO 2020, UEFA Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League by acquiring rights to the UEFA Women’s Champions League and UEFA Women’s EURO 2022.
For Heineken this meant more than just being a sponsor, it meant making meaningful change in the game, starting with tackling gender bias affecting both players and fans of the sport with its “Cheers to All Fans…Men Included” campaign.
Heineken’s manifesto for UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 was to turn its brand objectives into actionable moments to support, grow and celebrate the tournament. To do this, Heineken wanted to give female talent a stage, challenge gender bias, share highlight moments of the tournament with football fans, engage customers at scale, make the Final accessible to all and leave a lasting legacy. So they did just that…
574K+ tournament tickets sold, a global TV audience of 365M and a record-breaking Final later – a huge result for women’s sport and the biggest result for Heineken on its journey to inclusivity? 50% of people surveyed post-tournament by UEFA perceive Heineken as more inclusive due to its association with UEFA Women’s EURO 2022.
