This represented Aston Villa’s first season under the kit sponsorship of Nike, who followed in the footsteps of Hummel.
For this reason, the tagline of the campaign was ‘We Start Today’ pushing the deal with the highly-known sports brand.
This was also the final year of betting company 32Red as shirt sponsors.
The theme, agreed between marketing/merchandising chiefs at Villa and Nike, was ‘gladiatorial’ – showing several players – Gareth Barry, Olof Mellberg, Ashley Young, Gabby Agbonlahor, Shaun Maloney and Luke Moore – in confident and assured poses.
The campaign also focused on promoting Villa within the City of Birmingham – due in part to the recently-signed deal with Marketing Birmingham – and used iconic imagery, such as shopping centre ‘The Bullring’.
The pre-launch campaign, used in the preceding weeks, included teaser shots of Barry, Young and Agbonlahor.
All three were pictured with their backs to camera, Young and Barry on the pitch with Agbonlahor in the tunnel – in order to obscure the design on the front of the home kit.
Paul Brown 