Sporting KC Red Card

In 2011, as Sporting Kansas City was preparing to open their new world-class soccer stadium, LIVESTRONG Sporting Park, they were looking for a big-idea to help them christen their new digs and fire up a fan-base they were counting on to give them an unrivaled home field advantage. So, they approached Archrival and we knew exactly where to start – the game experience itself.

No amount of words could do justice in describing the incredible atmosphere at a Sporting KC home game so we came up with a fun and intriguing way to get people to experience it first-hand while also building Sporting KC’s Facebook fan base at the same time.

Enter Sporting KC Red Card. We sent soccer referees to invade the Kansas City nightlife scene in search of young people demonstrating “unsporting behavior.” Referees approached fans and asked them if they’ve ever been to a Sporting KC match. An answer of “no” earned them a blast from the whistle and the immediate issuance of a red card, “penalizing” them for their Unsporting Behavior.

Then, our referees supplied the culprit with two free tickets to a Sporting KC home game. After liking Sporting KC on Facebook, fans simply entered their red card code on a custom Facebook tab to redeem their vouchers.

Once the dust settled, our referees carded hundreds of fans, generated an epic amount of social buzz, and caused quite a stir in the Power and Light District. Under normal game situations, a red card gets you kicked out of a game. This one kicked you in!