Coldplay to help ESPN market European Championship soccer
BRISTOL, Conn.—Coldplay and ESPN have signed a marketing deal that will have the rock band promoting soccer and the sports network promoting the band's new album.
Coldplay's music will be featured in promotions for ESPN's coverage next month of the European Championship soccer tournament, the sports network announced Wednesday.
ESPN agreed to incorporate music from Coldplay's new release, "Viva La Vida," into game and studio production. The quadrennial tournament is scheduled for June 7-29 in Austria and Switzerland. The CD is due out June 12.
ESPN and ABC, both owned by The
The promotional spots also will use national anthems in addition to Coldplay's music. ESPN said the idea is to demonstrate the global importance of soccer and to create a greater interest in the sport "even among American fans."
"This is the first time ESPN has created a global marketing campaign with a unified strategy, message and advertising campaign," said Seth Ader, a senior director of sports marketing for ESPN. "The campaign captures the passion for European soccer by tapping into the insight that European nations' unique character and culture come alive on the pitch."
Two of the 31 matches will be televised by ABC: a quarterfinal on June 21 and the final on June 29, which will be part of a doubleheader that opens with David Beckham's Los Angeles Galaxy at D.C. United.
Seven games will be on ESPN, 17 on ESPN2 and five on ESPN Classic. This marks the first time the entire Euros will be shown live on non-pay-per-view U.S. television.
