The brand is pulling Josh Allen and Justin Jefferson off the field and into stadium parking lots for its new "Tailgate Crashers" campaign.
The sound of tailgating for hours on end just got a whole lot more interesting (well, for me at least).
This NFL season, Pepsi has tapped NFL stars Josh Allen (Buffalo Bills) and Justin Jefferson (Minnesota Vikings), pulling them off the field and into stadium parking lots. Instead of sticking to TV ads, Pepsi is sending them straight into the parking lot party for its latest "Tailgate Crashers" campaign to make the case that tailgating isn't complete without a cold Pepsi in hand. Because if your cooler isn't packed with cold sodas, your favorite NFL players (and maybe a spirit or two), you're basically missing the best part of gameday. Right? Right.
The campaign turns Allen and Jefferson into what Pepsi calls "flavor fanatics," swapping their team jerseys for those iconic blue Pepsi jumpsuits. During the campaign, they show up where fans are actually spending their time and prove that every burger, dog and wing tastes better with an ice-cold Pepsi.
"Tailgating sets the stage for gameday, and Pepsi has never been content with sitting on the sidelines," said Gustavo Reyna, VP of Marketing, Pepsi. "With 'Tailgate Crashers,' we're unapologetically crashing the party to bring the bold, refreshing flavor every tailgate deserves. Because when your food and team bring the heat, your tailgate deserves an ice-cold drink that can keep up."
They've got a lot to prove, though, because tailgating has leveled up in the past decade. When I was growing up and going to games with my dad, it was just a portable grill and a cooler. These days, one soda might not be enough to compete with the flat screens and full kitchens fans bring out. People spend serious money on these setups, but the point that Pepsi is trying to prove (and win fans over) is that somehow everyone's still drinking whatever they grabbed last minute from some random gas station.
If you want to meet the Crashers in your city, the campaign is planning to hit Eagles games at Lincoln Financial Field, Jets games at MetLife Stadium, and both LA teams at SoFi Stadium this season. Cowboys fans in Dallas and Commanders fans in Washington are on the list too, along with other locations they haven't announced.
Now the question is, will tailgaters embrace the Crashers or tell them to move along? We'll have to wait until the season begins to know for sure! Either way, it's a creative approach that acknowledges where the real fan experience happens -- the tailgate, of course. And it doesn't hurt that Josh Allen and Justin Jefferson are fan favorites, too.