Familiarizing "Football"

Arguably one of the less popular sports in the United States is European Football or as we know it, soccer. However, over the past decade, soccer has increased its popularity in the United States with the domestic league, Major League Soccer (MLS) and also foreign leagues in Germany, Spain, and Italy. One of the more popular and commercialized European leagues is the English Premier League (EPL). Clubs like Manchester United and Chelsea (both are EPL teams) are known for making tours of the United States playing exhibition matches during their off season and even playing against the MLS All Star team. The presence of these English teams has created a demand for fans who want to watch quality European Football. The NBC network penned a deal in the summer of 2013 that allowed them to carry all English Premier League games and broadcast them nation wide. In an attempt to promote these broadcasts, NBC came out with the following advertisement:

This advertisement aims to familiarize the foreign concept of European Football for people who have grown up watching American Football. For people whose interest in Football has not grown over the last decade, this advertisement gives them a welcome opportunity to adjust to the change. Jason Sudeikis plays the funny, stereotypical American who has very little knowledge of European Football. The audience can connect with some of the feelings and presumptions Jason is having. More importantly the commercial acts as comedic relief, by answering some serious questions the audience might have in regards to European Football. By doing this the advertisement gives viewers a non threatening opportunity for new audiences to become fans of European Football by watching on NBC.