Time to dust off your flags - the Nike ad is here

The World Cup is fast approaching - and there’s no hiding from it. For weeks before a ball is even kicked, the free wall chart promotions, the media hysteria and St George’s Cross flags hanging out of every other car make sure that, when it eventually begins, everyone with even the slightest interest in the national sport is struck down with football fever.

And in the same way that the build-up to Christmas wouldn’t feel like the build-up to Christmas without the Coke adverts, the World Cup wouldn’t feel the same without a big-budget, overblown Nike TV advert.

First they gave us Eric Cantona saying au revoir to the devil, then they treated us to some Brazilian flair in the departure lounge. And now we have the Write The Future ad, created by ad agency Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam and directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu, previously responsible for Hollywood blockbusters Babel and 21 Grams.

A main ingredient to these Nike ads is usually a selection of the world’s best footballers, and this ad doesn’t disappoint. Ronaldinho (who, amusingly, didn’t even make the Brazil squad), Wayne Rooney, Franck Ribery and Cristiano Ronaldo all star.

The full-length version was aired during the Champions League final and, despite being more entertaining than the final itself, has already drawn criticism from some quarters. The Guardian saw it as more of a triumph of huge budgets than creative talent. A big budget helps, but there’s no denying it’s another very impressive ad.

The way it draws on the thin line between success and failure is an interesting concept. One mistake can certainly define a footballer’s legacy. (Unless, of course, you’re David Beckham, who successfully turned from pantomime villain into national hero.) Similarly, one moment of skill, or perhaps fortune, can not only elevate that player to god-like status, but also have a massive effect on all elements of popular media - from traditional print media to digital platforms like YouTube.

The ad successfully avoids feeling overly sentimental, and despite being action-packed, is also quite funny. (Perhaps solely because one would suspect that if Wayne Rooney wasn’t a multi-millionaire footballer, he probably would be slightly overweight with a wild ginger beard.)

Write The Future goes social

If the TV ad doesn’t float your boat, the Write The Future campaign has spread to social media. Nike are running a competition in which fans can write a message that will be stitched to Wayne Rooney and Ashley Cole’s boots in South Africa. Supported by both Sky Sports and The Sun, it uses a Facebook app to let fans see what their message would look like on their chosen player’s boots.

Will those words have any effect this summer? We’ll have to wait and see.