Diego Maradona has died, leaving the whole world in grief. The news that the Argentinean professional football player’s heart has stopped beating triggered some very emotional responses from his fans and the sports world. Fans describe him as a “myth,” a “profound human being,” he “was a God,” and his “failings made him more human.” “Diego embodied the ultimate football fantasy,” one fan says.
In the sports universe, Messi said that Maradona “leaves us but does not leave, because Diego is eternal,” Cristiano Ronaldo described him as “an unparalleled magician” who left “a void that will never be filled.” Pelé’s words were that he lost a great friend and “the world lost a legend,” hoping that one day, they can “play football in the sky.”
Wherever the player is now, he probably needs a ball to do what he loved most — playing football. Through a short video, Ogilvy Social.Lab and Panenka Football Magazine symbolically send Maradona “The Ball of God,” a touching tribute to the man who transcended football and captured the world’s imagination. The duo pays homage to him via a short video set in the place where it all started: A potrero, a typical vacant space in a part of Buenos Aires. Although it is not an official football field, a potrero is a place which kids use to play football and where Maradona first started to play this sport.
The video focuses on a boy saying goodbye to the man who is considered one of the greatest players of all-time. Although heavily used, the fan offers his ball as a gift, attaching it to a string of balloons, making sure it reaches the football player, wherever he is now. The filming took place in the authentic slum districts of Argentina’s capital. The Amsterdam-based agency worked closely with the magazine and Spanish production company BeSweet Films, completing the entire creative process, production, and editing in a matter of days.
Executive Creative Director, Tolga Büyükdoganay, says: “Diego gave us everything in the world that could be done with a football. The least we could do is give him one back to make him happy.” The video concludes with Maradona’s own words: “I tried to be happy playing football and make you all happy too.” A short phrase that sums up the emotions and feelings of fans around the world!
Credits:
Client: Panenka Football Magazine
Agency: Ogilvy Social.Lab Amsterdam
Creatives: Federico Botella Padilla, Diego Lauton De Oliviera
ECD: Tolga Büyükdoğanay
Agency Producer: Tamara Bogard
Production: BeSweet films + PANENKA
Directors: Matias Saravia & Larissa Cambauva
Producer: Juan San Roman