Kuala Lumpur, 5 June 2017 – This UEFA Champions League season, Malaysians started their day at 2 A.M. to champion the match nights with Heineken®, the official partner to the world’s most prestigious club football competition.
Rewarding those who journeyed through the season with Heineken®’s Champion the Match Night campaign which encouraged them to sleep early and wake up early to turn their 2 A.M. into an early day, Heineken® took a step further by completely transforming one of Kuala Lumpur’s unconventional hotels, the Container Hotel, into an ultimate final match viewing party.
To champion the final match night, Heineken® transformed the hotel into a chill out indoor match screening venue that allowed guests to celebrate the match like a true fan. The exclusive viewing party, which was by invitation only, hosted more than 100 Malaysian football fans nationwide. They enjoyed the final match screening in a unique location with ice-cold Heineken® beers and food by The Mothership, accompanied by energetic beats by one half of the dynamic DJ duo BATE, WH. They also had the opportunity to unleash the inner footballer in them with exciting football games and take home exclusive Heineken® UEFA Champions League merchandises.
“As a proud partner of the UEFA Champions League, Heineken® here in Malaysia wanted Malaysian fans to get the best possible match experiences this season. The match times were the biggest hurdles for them but Heineken® took over the quiet hours of the night and provided solutions to inspire fans to sleep early and wake up to champion the match nights. We are pleased that many passionate fans have shared that spirit with Heineken® this season and some of them were even rewarded with money-can’t-buy football experiences at an international level which are exclusive to only Heineken®,” said Loh Ee Lin, Marketing Manager of Heineken®.
Throughout Heineken®’s Champion the Match Night campaign, Heineken® inspired football fans to actively planned their schedules around the matches with Heineken®’s online solutions that helped them to kick-start their day at 2 A.M. The solutions ranged from signing up for the Heineken® Wake-Up Call and Heineken® Match Night Delivery, to taking part in Heineken®’s Playmaker Challenge or even joining in exciting football events at participating bars and outlets nationwide.
“It was challenging to wake up for late-night matches even as a huge football fan. However, this season is extremely different, especially with the activities that Heineken® offered throughout the campaign. Heineken® has truly opened up my world to view these late-night matches differently. It was not a late night after all, but an an early day!” shared Ryan Lee, one of the invited guests of the party, who was also among one of the seven winners who won an all-expenses-paid trip to watch the UEFA Champions League semi-final LIVE at Madrid, Spain.
Echoing the same sentiment, Ethan Curzon, a fashion entrepreneur by day, DJ by night and an all-time football fan, shared that Heineken® has further driven his passion in football this season, especially with the never-ending exciting activities that only happen at quiet hours of the night, which has since changed the way he viewed these hours as early days.
In conjunction with the campaign, Heineken® released its limited edition UEFA Champions League trophy bottles and cans for consumers to enjoy which was made available at participating bars and outlets. For those who made the extra effort to celebrate the UEFA Champions League matches with Heineken® whether at bars or at home, they were rewarded with exclusive football experiences. These exclusive experiences included the opportunity to catch the semi-final match live at the Vicente Calderon Stadium in Madrid, Spain and an all-inclusive trip to experience the UEFA Champions League final screening while sailing along the magnificent Greek islands on a luxury cruise with ice-cold Heineken® beers.
During the semi-finals and final match nights, Heineken® partnered with Uber for the first-of-its-kind late-night delivery. The delivery kits included complimentary ice-cold Heineken®, limited edition UBER merchandises and snacks, which were delivered via Uber to consumers right before the matches began which enabled them to champion the match nights with their friends in the comfort of their homes.
A local TVC was also launched for the first time, featuring local Playmakers. The 60-second video shows how Malaysian football fans make an effort to overcome match night excuses to watch the matches live, like a true fan.
