The Brand: U21 Portugal National Team

The Campaign: U21 Euro 2025 Campaign

Brand Challenge: While the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF) traditionally focuses its campaigns on the main National Team and the Women’s National Team, the U21 squad has often lacked the spotlight it deserves—despite consistently showcasing some of the country’s most exciting young talents. This year, with Portugal among the favorites for the UEFA U21 European Championship and a new generation of stars emerging across Europe, it was time to elevate the U21s’ profile. The challenge: to capture national attention for the U21s at a time when Portugal’s senior team was competing in the Nations League, the Women’s team was set for the UEFA Women’s Euro, and leading clubs were battling in the FIFA Club World Cup.

Strategic Approach: Today’s young athletes and fans are digital natives, deeply connected to online communities and inspired by culture, music, and lifestyle as much as by sport. To truly engage them, the campaign needed to speak their language—blending football, music, and youth culture in a way that felt bold, fresh, and uniquely Portuguese.

To achieve this, we partnered with Plutónio—one of Portugal’s most recognized and irreverent artists. With a career defined by authenticity and a sound that has reached global audiences, Plutónio is a symbol of ambition, resilience, and Portuguese pride. His music resonates with the same energy and ambition as the young talents on the pitch, making him the perfect voice to amplify the U21 team’s story and capture the nation’s attention.

Creative Concept: Portugal Next Gen
“Portugal Next Gen” is an established FPF platform, designed to promote and celebrate all young national teams and their rising stars. For the U21 Euro 2025 campaign, we leveraged this existing concept, infusing it with new energy by featuring Plutónio’s music and attitude. By doing so, we ensured the campaign had the cultural weight and cool factor to stand out, even as the spotlight was shared with the senior National Team, the Women’s Euro, and the Club World Cup. This was about more than football: it was about putting the U21s at the heart of the national conversation, with music, attitude, and style that reflected the spirit of a new Portugal.

Credits

Brand Manager: Telmo Esteves

Brand Manager: Rui Mascarenhas

Production: Pluma + Marta Dias Coelho