Record-breaking success for Greene King

The challenge

Greene King came to us with the challenge of turning Euro 2024 into a nationwide reason to go out, not stay in. To win the tournament was to acquire new customers and grow Greene King Sport’s first-party audience through bookings, app registrations and repeat usage. At the same time, the campaign had to clearly signal that every nationality was welcome, not just England and Scotland fans.

The approach

With the tournament on terrestrial TV and household budgets under pressure, the sofa became the primary competitor. But people were craving shared moments, not just matches. So, there was one solution: make the pub feel like the nation’s living room again and invite everyone. Our approach was to unite the entire Greene King estate under one welcoming platform, Hosting the Nation, and treat every fixture as an occasion.

We developed a bright, optimistic, tournament-inspired identity to carry the campaign across channels and touchpoints. One hero script was written to hold every commercial lever, then broken into capsule films so we could dial up different calls to action as the tournament progressed.

Fans from across Europe were featured in the creative, with native-language content produced for key communities to ensure the invitation landed clearly and respectfully. Staff guidance, tiered toolkits, and consistent POS created the same warm welcome at every site, whether guests were cheering for England, Scotland, or any other nation.

Gamification

Inside the Greene King Sport app, we launched the Nation’s Biggest Sweepstake, giving every player a second team to follow. We used technology to transform neutral fixtures into must-see moments, creating real FOMO. When their sweepstake team won, they won a free national drink.

This turned every fixture into a spectacle and drove in-pub behaviour at exactly the moment it mattered. We also designed live, shareable face filters which extend the experience to social feeds, showing football communities celebrating in pubs across the UK.

Production

A three-day film and photography shoot produces the hero film, stills and a flexible content system for social, digital, OOH and in-venue screens. Casting reflected the mix of nationalities that call the UK home.

Post-production editing balanced direct-to-camera moments with scenes capturing the pub experience, alongside archival Greene King footage. Detailed colour grading, subtle animations and layered soundscapes supported the visuals and reinforced key moments without overpowering the performances.

The results

Hosting the Nation was recognised as the best Integrated B2C Campaign at the Global Digital Excellence Awards 2025. The campaign drove significant sales and footfall across the Greene King estate, while connecting global fans through celebration and camaraderie. It exceeded all major KPIs and set new benchmarks for major tournaments.