If you like football at least a little bit, you’ve probably heard about Spanish El Clásico – probably one of the most famous football’s derbies. With three of these fierce matches to be played within a month, SNIFF—a non-profit rescue organisation for abandoned pets in the UAE—decided to show that these matches don’t have to be only about beer-drinking, football-loving, and, well, loud humans.
To capitalise on the biggest football rivalry in the world and to ‘tackle’ the biggest challenge for rescue organisations, in the UAE and globally, SNIFF passed the ball to Dubai-based agency TBWA\RAAD. Together they want to convince people that mixed-breed dogs can be as trainable and as adoptable as any other pure breed dog.
By questioning the old saying “You CAN´T teach an old dog a new trick,” the company decided to go the extra mile and train a pack of abandoned mix-breed dogs to play and enjoy the most passionate sport of the region: football. SNIFF then split the dogs into two teams, and you’re guessing right, adorned them in jerseys of the two world-class teams: Real Madrid and Barcelona.
Let’s meet The Clásico Dogs. The film introduces six incredibly talented, and indeed cute, mixed-breed furry pals that are looking for adoption. And let’s not forget about Furby—the Arabian Mau cat—that is keeping an eye on everyone. Yes, they all love football as much as any regular Clásico fan. Goalkeeping enthusiasts will cheer for Dogtois, an endearing canine that never lets a ball pass.
But watch out! There’s Suarex. He can give any ball a good bite while spurring football fans across the region, winning their hearts. As you might have realized by now the characters are inspired by world-famous footballers, such as Thibaut Courtois, Luis Suárez – famous for actually biting his opponents, or Lionel Messi – in our case just short and unstoppable Messy below. The ingenious film is jammed with footie jokes and moves which every true Clásico fan can relate to.
“At SNIFF, our mission is to actively promote the adoption of mix breed dogs by combining a body of services that assist the animals from the ground to a ‘forever home’”, said Jasmeen Bhirani, co-founder of SNIFF. “It is important to educate in a fun way the responsibility of adoption versus buying pets. We extend our appreciation and gratitude to TBWA\RAAD, a radical and innovative ad agency that has greatly helped SNIFF raise awareness on the importance of rehoming abandoned pets in the UAE, especially mix breed dogs and cats”, added Bhirani.
To take the campaign to the next level, the social media handles of SNIFF: Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, will cover live all three upcoming Clásicos. Although the first one was actually played on Wednesday, February 6, you still have two more matches to follow on the organisation’s sites and support the cause by watching comments and highlights from the four-legged Clásico stars!
Finally, the Clasíco Dogs invite the country of Dubai to show their support by offering a chance to adopt, foster, or sponsor them. And to those who can’t, the cute doggos ask to just simply ‘like’ SNIFF’s social media pages. You will not only help increase awareness for abandoned pets across the region but also get a chance to watch some great game of fetch, oh sorry, football.
