Guinness, historically synonymous with rugby, faced a critical business need: to transcend its regional associations and achieve unprecedented global brand expansion. The challenge was to embed Guinness into new international markets and global culture. The strategic solution was a ground-breaking partnership with the Premier League, the world’s most-watched football league, offering unparalleled global reach, emotional connection, and a perfect alignment with Guinness’s authentic brand values.
From this partnership, “Matchdays Together with Guinness” was created – a season-long content series exploring the authentic Premier League fan experience. This included pre-match rituals, community stories, and fan traditions, captured both domestically across all 20 Premier League clubs and internationally in key markets like New York, Nairobi, and Seoul. The content showcased how the matchday occasion could now be the Guinness occasion, regardless of location.
Initially launched as long-form, the strategy evolved for domestic content, pivoting to impactful short-form segments distributed across Instagram, Facebook, X, and YouTube Shorts, significantly amplified by targeted paid media. This approach drove massive engagement and reach.
The campaign delivered outstanding results. It dramatically boosted top-of-mind sponsor awareness and strengthened Guinness’s association with the Premier League. Unaided beer awareness tripled (32% uplift) across the UK, Ireland, and other European markets, while top-of-mind sponsorship awareness saw a remarkable 36% uplift globally. The creative content resonated strongly, with 9 in 10 fans agreeing Guinness supports the Premier League community, successfully establishing Guinness as a global football brand, and providing a blueprint for future international marketing.
