ASICS launches trainers with karaoke competition

ASICS, the cult Japanese trainer maker, is to run what it claims is the world’s first internet karaoke competition, as part of a pan-European online football World Cup campaign for its premium range, Onitsuka Tiger. The campaign – “Lovely Football” – marks the launch of a new street shoe, the Injector DX.

StrawberryFrog, the international advertising agency based in Amsterdam and New York, created the campaign for ASICS. It features a three-minute film of a Japanese choir singing a specially composed football anthem. Viewers are then invited to plug a microphone into their PCs and record their own karaoke version, which will be judged for accuracy by special software on the website. The best five versions of the song will win a pair of the shoes.

The “Lovely Football” film – part of the Japanese company’s build-up for the World Cup – will also be available on CD-Rom from selected shoe retailers and can be downloaded at www.onitsukatiger.com.

Other elements of the campaign include print ads in lifestyle magazines and a viral campaign that sees video footage of the choir in action sent to millions of sneaker heads around the world.