Imagine if you will, an ocean tanker moored in an abandoned harbor surrounded by the silence and darkness of the night. Then imagine, in the industrial bowels of the massive ship, an energized football pitch enclosed in a cage with two fireplace-sized goals, 24 elite footballers and a menacing overseer embodied by footie legend Eric Cantona.

This is the dark setting for Nike's new global football campaign "The Secret Tournament" from Wieden + Kennedy Amsterdam and @radical.media director Terry Gilliam. The three-minute spot features the masterful footwork, wily tactics and balls-out energy of the players. An up-tempo remix of Elvis' "A Little Less Conversation" - incidentally, the first-ever remix of an Elvis track - sets the aural feel, alongside excellent sound design of a steel-balled, sudden death cage match. To view the spot, visit www.boardsmag.com/screeningroom.

The campaign began as a series of scorpion logos appearing in spray paint around the world, followed by 10-second teasers in March featuring those scorpions in unknown metal environments. Posters of the various teams were distributed globally as a final hype-building exercise prior to the Apr. 4 launch of the campaign. The integrated campaign includes the longer spot, which features the tournament, plus 60-second and 30-second cutdowns, cinema and print ads, outdoor and live events posters, radio, and an interactive CD-ROM and Web site.

The Web site informs that a secret tourney, which allows for experimentation and improvisation, is taking place "far from nervous coaches and stuffy traditionalists." It then warns that there will be "no draws, no disputes, and no crying." Visitors are invited to fill out a bracket, predicting which team will reign victorious in the secret tournament, which launches April 4. The CD-ROM outlines the athletes and includes interactive elements like games and interviews.

Credits: W+K CDs Glenn Cole and Paul Shearer, producers Donna Lamar and Susan Cook, copywriter Tim Wolfe and art director Frank Hahn. Tommy Turtle produced for @radical.media. Milan prodco Some of Us serviced with DP Nicola Pecorini and first AD Serena Canevari. Post was from The Whitehouse with FX from the Mill, both of London. Sound mix and design from Scramble Sound and A-Bomb.

Webfiles:
Nike Football> http://www.nikefootball.com
Wieden + Kennedy> http://www.wk.com