16.04.2010

Beverage cans get the ball rolling

Ball Packaging Europe produces special can editions for the Football World Cup

Ratingen, 16 April 2010 – Looking forward to the Football World Cup in South Africa - with original special editions of beverage cans, brand owners are able to celebrate the big event. Not only beer, but also whisky and coke is on offer: beverage can producer Ball Packaging Europe produces original designed cans for Hasseröder, Jim Beam and the Oettinger brewery. The beverage producers once again rely on the can as a popular event package. Since the familiar packages are not only easy to cool quickly, but also unbreakable and 100 percent recyclable and are, therefore, an ideal companion for watching football – whether outdoors in public, or at home.

One official beer of the World Cup in South Africa this year is Hasseröder, the premium pilsner from Wernigerode. The beer is one of several beer brands of the brewery group Anheuser-Busch InBev, which also includes Beck’s, Franziskaner and Löwenbräu. That the choice within the group fell on Hasseröder went without saying, “The brand Hasseröder is in Germany one of the ten best-known sports sponsors in the area of brand articles,“ explains Claudia Klehr, Manager of Communications at InBev Germany. “In doing so we promote not only top-level sports with clubs like Hannover 96, but also numerous small clubs of all achievement levels. Being awarded the designation of official beer for the FIFA Football World Cup 2010 is, however, a premiere for Hasseröder“.

The Cup in his hand
In the run up to the World Cup, Hasseröder designed, for all of the products, a new FIFA World Cup labelling. Besides the line “official beer of the FIFA World Cup 2010“, the FIFA World Cup is to be seen on all of the products. On the metal beverage can it takes up, in glittering gold, the whole of the rear side – the consumer  seemingly holds the Cup in his own hand. With a large number of activities throughout Germany which include, among other things, fan T shirts, a TV campaign, football weekends and ticket raffles, Hasseröder targets male fans. That corresponds to the target group for the premium pilsner from Wernigerode 90 percent of which is consumed by men.

The zebra look is meant to attract impulse buyers
Also manufacturers which do not have any official connection with FIFA, systematically make use of the World Cup euphoria for marketing campaigns and hence address not only beer drinkers.

Beam Global Deutschland GmbH has set up a special edition of its popular ready-to-drink mix of Jim Beam & coke in beverage cans. Since February, the 0.33 litre can produced by Ball Packaging Europe has  been available in the retail trade, beverage cash and carry markets as well as from service stations. The design systematically relies on remote effect, since the special edition is meant to be already recognizable as such from far off. A zebra pattern that decorates the “collar“ of the can is combined with a ball sewn out of flags on the back and hence directly establishes the association with South Africa and the World Cup. “We make use of progress in technical development“, explains Cirsten Dieckmann, Brand Manager at Beam Global Deutschland GmbH. “Thanks to high-resolution print, the design is particularly in focus and brilliant.“  Additionally, a display holding 144 cans, to which a huge Jim Beam & Coke can is diagonally attached, is available to the trade. With the attention-grabbing design, Jim Beam wants to systematically surprise not only its regular buyers, but also hopes for increased sales from impulse buyers. Two years ago that had already succeeded with a special edition for the European Championship: at that time growth rates of 25 percent were recorded. “Initial sales are going very well“, says Dieckmann, “In the next few months we will back up the special edition with further activities and events.“

Black, red and gold euphoria
Even what are known as entry-level brands know how to make use of the World Cup enthusiasm in an ingenious way and, with striking designs, to stimulate the consumers’ inclination to buy. The brand “Original- 5,0“ from Oettinger Brauerei GmbH usually deliberately dispenses with involved design elements and in that way signals to the consumer that he can purchase quality at an attractive price. Right in time for the World Cup, the can now appears on the shelf again in the national colours – a simple, but attention-grabbing design for the current occasion: printed in black, red and yellow all round, it is the perfect attribute for the German fan who wants to cheer the national team to victory. “The can is meant to speak for itself“, explains Jörg Dierig, Overall Nat./Int. Sales Manager of the Oettinger Braugruppe, a branch establishment of Oettinger. “We will not do any further advertising for it with support measures. That is part of the Oettinger philosophy that, as a matter of principle, tries to avoid everything that makes a product more expensive. What we want to do is to sell beer at the lowest possible prices.” In that way Oettinger has won first place among the canned beers: “Original-5,0“ is by now, with very nearly 20 percent, the market leader in the can segment for pilsner. As from Whitsuntide, the company could further develop this position as then the Germany can will be available – it goes without saying throughout Germany – through the retail trade for a period of seven weeks.

“Official stuff“ for Eintracht Frankfurt fans
Not only in the international scene do football and the beverage can belong together.  The new fan drink “Adler Schoppe“, an apple wine with soda water added to it from the family-owned wine press-house Possmann, with its presentation systematically targets the fans of the Hessian football club Eintracht Frankfurt which is in the German Bundesliga: the half-litre can produced by Ball Packaging Europe is printed in the colours red, black and white and decorated with the club’s emblem. Since mid March it has been available from, among others, the food trade in Hesse, from lots of service stations and kiosks, from beverage wholesalers as well as from fan and souvenir shops. “Especially here in Hesse apple wine is extremely popular – in particular among football fans “, says Alexander von Falkenhausen, Director of Marketing at Possmann. ”With the launch of our apple wine Adler Schoppe the Eintracht Frankfurt fans can now show their loyalty to their traditional Hessian drink with the cool Eintracht look. And on the back of the can we remind the fans of legendary and unforgettable events of the traditional club Eintracht Frankfurt.“

Green and climate-friendly
There are no limits set for the design of the beverage can in keeping with football: also the can end can now be fully printed by Ball Packaging Europe, for example with a black and white football design or a picture of the green football pitch. The beverage can is also green in another respect: it is the most recycled beverage package in the world. Recycling contributes to reducing CO2 emissions and thus to the protection of the climate. Through the use of recycled material, up to 95 percent of the energy can be saved that would be required to produce new material. In Germany, by now more than 90 percent of beverage cans are recycled.

Contact:
Sylvia Blömker
Director Public Relations
Phone: +49 2102 130 451
Mobile: +49 172 514 1503
sylvia_bloemker@ball-europe.com

Ball Packaging Europe
Ball Packaging Europe is one of the leading European beverage can manufacturers, employing 2,900 people at 13 sites in Germany, France, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Poland and Serbia. The company is a subsidiary of Ball Corporation, a supplier of high-quality metal and plastic packaging for beverage, food and household products customers, and of aerospace and other technologies and services, primarily for the U.S. government. Ball Corporation and its subsidiaries employ more than 14,000 people worldwide and reported 2009 sales of approx. 7.3 billion US dollars.

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