Gillette Football Club tackles YouTube with Big Balls

The Gillette Football Club channel is now in its full transmission version on YouTube, offering match highlights, goals and magazine programmes looking at the lifestyles and training of top players. Gillette is aiming to become the main sponsor of football coverage on YouTube, working with broadcasters and clubs for footage of European leagues, as well as commissioning special programmes from production company Big Balls Films.

The new branded service went live in beta form in mid-September and is now fully up and running. Gillette Football Club is bringing together clips and programming from Serie A in Italy and the Spanish La Liga, as well as clubs such as Manchester City, Chelsea and Paris St Germain. Production companies and broadcasters supplying the YouTube channel include ESPN and talkSPORT.

The service has been designed to allow fans to sign up  and choose what leagues and clubs they want to watch. Once that selection has been made new videos will be sent to the viewer as soon as they are available. All users of Gillette Football Club have free access to recent goals, highlights, news and statistics.

The package also includes specially produced entertainment programming made by Big Balls Films. Right now the company is producing two out of eight programmes in the schedules but a spokesman for Big Balls said the intention was to increase this ratio. Big Balls also owns and runs Copa90, a YouTube channel with films featuring player skills, new kits and players away from the field.

Big Balls’ output is produced at its in-house, Apple Final Cut Pro-based facility in London. The spokesman said a major consideration in shooting and post-producing the programmes is the thumbnails used on the Gillette Football Club that allow viewers to find what they want to see.

Gillette Football Club was developed in a project headed by brand agency Proximity BBDO Paris. Company chief executive Olivier Rippe said the channel had been “a challenge from both a creative and technical standpoint.” He added, “We have gathered experts, sports journalists and exceptional partners to create a programme that lives up to P&G’s very high expectations and business priorities of the group.”

Alex Tosolini, vice president of E-Business for Gillette parent company Procter &Gamble commented, “This new offering makes life even easier for football fans online. It brings together engaging highlights from some of the world’s top leagues all in one place. Our partnership with YouTube means we can provide curated content to football fans.”