ISTANBUL, TURKEY — To celebrate the return of the UEFA Champions League Final to Istanbul, smart technology company OPPO and creative agency Sid Lee collaborated to deliver a global campaign that argues miracles don’t just happen, they’re made of years of hard work, expertise, professionalism, and perseverance.
As an Official Sponsor of the UEFA Champions League, OPPO has created a film featuring its Global Brand Ambassador, Ricardo Kaká, a player who featured in the 2005 UEFA Champions League Final when Liverpool came back in dramatic fashion to beat AC Milan in a match described as “The Miracle of Istanbul.”
In the global film, Ricardo, a former Ballon d’Or winner who played for legendary UEFA Champions League teams AC Milan and Real Madrid, reflects on the many miracles he has witnessed throughout his career, sometimes on the wrong side such as the 2005 UEFA Champions League Final, and sometimes on the right, like when AC Milan avenged the loss in 2005 by beating Liverpool to win the 2007 Final.
Much like OPPO’s leading mobile technology, Ricardo argued these miraculous moments were no accident but born out of years of precision, performance, perseverance, and expertise. You can’t just wait for a miracle to happen, you need to work hard and make it happen yourself.
The 90s hero film launched globally on May 30. The campaign also includes print, press, and online media, as well as a TikTok challenge where Ronaldo challenged users to a duet of skills using #MakeYourMiracle.
Stéphane Soussan, ECD of Sid Lee Paris, said, “It was a true privilege to work with such a great player, Ricardo Kaka, as he’s the narrator of the great moments that make up football. The challenge was mixing archive footage and live shoots while maintaining a high level of craft. The result is a great film for a great final.”
Sid Lee London CEO Stephen Hall added, “Over the years, the UEFA Champions League has produced many miraculous moments of footballing drama. It’s been a pleasure working with OPPO to bring some of these moments to life through such a wonderfully crafted campaign.”
“This campaign brilliantly reflects OPPO’s ‘Inspiration Ahead’ brand positioning,” Olivella Liu, OPPO Global Brand Director, shared. “We are delighted to showcase our UCL partnership through such powerful and authentic storytelling.”
CREDITS:
Client: OPPO
Olivella Liu: Global Brand Director
Mengjie Zhou: Brand Partnership Director
Lang Zhang: UCL Partnership Lead
Rocky Xu: Project Lead
Runch Lan: Creative Lead
Ida Deng: Digital Lead
Sabrina Shi: PR Lead
Brent Lin: Media Lead
Yin Wang: Event Lead
Creative agency: Sid Lee
Creative Director: Stephane Soussan
Business Director: Mike Grumbridge
Strategy Director: Bruno Lee
Senior Account Director: Ty Oakwood
Senior Account Manager: Sam Bridgwater
Art Director: Pierre-Antoine Gilles
Copywriter: Mathieu Cuvelier
Strategist: Leah Daymon
Producer: Laetitia Neves
Production: Hamlet
Director: Scott Perry
DP: Todd Martin
Production: Hamlet Paris
Executive producer: Marie Archambeaud
Line producer: Antonin Romeuf
Production assistant: Lida Sahakian
1st AD: Paul Jolliot
Service production: APROD
Executive producer: Louis Ditapichai,
TH producer: Natcha Osborne
Art director: Perb
Stylist: Katae
Post-producer coordinator Hamlet: Léa Torok
Post-production House: Everest
Editor: Mark Potter
Color grader: Nicolas Gautier
VFX Supervisor: Thomas Espinosa
Music & Sound-Design: Benzene
Original Music, Sound Design & Mix: benzēne
Head of Music & Sound: Grégoire Musso
Music & Sound Producer: Heather MacFarlane
Composer: Chris Rizzo
Sound Designers: Mathias Villeroy, Loïc Canevet, Marc Eres
Mix: Pauline Facon
