“‘Football Emperor’ Pele’s unusual love of Japanese cars… all his many sponsored favorite horses? [여車저車]”- The economy of the herald

Car brands that loved Pele
Honda·Volkswagen·Benz·BMW attract attention

[헤럴드경제=김성우 기자] “Football emperor Pele (35, real name Edsong Aranchis Dunacimentou) signed a three-year 135 million yen deal with Japanese automaker Honda (about 229.5 million won in Korean currency at the time).” (1976 newspaper article)

Winter of 1976. It was the off season of the American Soccer League. After leaving Santos FC, where he had been for 14 years, he moved to the American team New York Cosmos and spent a year there, signing an advertising contract with the Japanese car brand Honda. 45 million yen annually on an annual basis. At the time, it was the highest amount for an individual advertising deal for a sports star.

The advertising industry has started to move. Previously, the highest advertising amount for a sports star was 20 million yen, set by genius golf star Johnny Miller and figure skating queen Janet Gerhauser, and 30 million yen annually by boxer Muhammad Ali . Through this contract, Pelé took on advertising models for Honda motorcycles and Honda cars.

Pelé appeared as a model for a Honda motorcycle commercial. [quique maqueda 핀더레스트 페이지]

The recently deceased ‘Black Pearl’ Pele is soccer’s biggest star ever, having won three World Cup titles. He is known to the world as a ‘car maniac’. Numerous “love horses” have emerged as the subject of a new topic. In other words, many finished car brands have used Pele to implement various marketing strategies.

South American soccer stars became a great advertising tool for automakers as they pioneered new markets. Pele’s cars, which are now in the public domain, are said to have been delivered by finished car manufacturers or local importers. Show the calculation to stand on the shoulders of Pele, sports star and car enthusiast.

Honda, which has signed an advertising contract with Pele, is a prime example. Honda, which started out as a motorcycle brand, released the T360 turbo and S500 sports car in 1963. The Honda Civic was introduced in 1972. In the finished car industry, it was close to a laggard. However, the level of technology was the highest sufficient to develop an environmentally friendly engine (CVCC engine) in advance.

At Honda, Pele was the best promotional model. He was the best player in football history and a symbol of defiance. Pelé held the unprecedented record of being the youngest World Cup goalscorer, youngest hat-trick and three World Cup winners. To pioneer a new football market, he left Santos FC, a Brazilian team, and moved to New York Cosmos in New York, USA, which was a “football wasteland” and was seen as one “spirit of defiance”.

Honda chose Pele as the template for the CG125, which was being launched in South America at the time. In 1976, a further large advertising contract was signed. All vehicles and motorcycles produced by Honda were promoted through Pele. You can find commercials with Pele to this day. Thanks to this, the CG125 has left its name as the best-selling motorcycle in Brazil.

Brazilian superstar Pelé stands in front of his first car. [Autojosh.com 갈무리]

Pelé’s first car was the Volkswagen “Pusca” (the sales name of the Beetle in Central and South America). Walter Herbert, a German who fell in love with Pele, is said to have given the car to Pele. Faro Malupu, who was the mayor of São Paulo when Pelé won his first World Cup, is also said to have supplied it to the Brazilian team.

Pele showed such special affection that he kept his first car in his garage for decades. According to local media in Brazil, this Beetle went on the local auction market in October last year at a price of about US$500,000 (about 700 million Korean won). Local media reported that “Pele has put the car up for sale to raise money for colon cancer treatment.”

Perhaps knowing Pelé’s love for Volkswagen, Volkswagen, which has sponsored the Brazilian national team since 2009, named Pelé its official ambassador in 2013. Pelé served as a role model to represent Volkswagen at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil and the Olympics of Rio in 2016.

Pele’s second car was a BMW Isetta. Similarly, I received a BMW as a gift from an importer who was importing it from Brazil. The American car manufacturer Aero Willys (later American Motor Corporation, dissolved in 1988) also presented Pele with an Air Willys 2600, which was manufactured in Brazil.

The car of Brazilian superstar Pelé. [Autojosh.com 갈무리]

Mercedes-Benz gave Pele a new car whenever there was a special sporting event. When Pelé scored his 1,000th goal in 1969 when he was a member of Santos FC, Mercedes-Benz presented Pelé with a 250 W114. As the World Cup in Germany approached, Mercedes-Benz changed the car to the 280 SE W108 model. Pele appeared in a Mercedes-Benz at a public event. Mercedes-Benz was considered a symbol of Pele. Pele sold the vehicle shortly thereafter. Mercedes-Benz then bought the car back in 2004 and presented it to Pele. Pele’s 280S vehicle is said to have already changed hands 18 times at the time.

The promotion with sports stars from finished car manufacturers or importers is still the same. The same goes for the Maserati Levante driven by Son Heung-min. It is also known that this was supplied by the importer. The Levante is a semi-large SUV with a length of over 5 meters. Depending on the engine size, it has a price range of 120 million won to 240 million won. Speed ​​and skill are what football and cars have in common. It can be seen that the intersection of the two fields that every man loves is amassing the history of marketing.

The car of Brazilian superstar Pelé. [Autojosh.com 갈무리]

zzz@heraldcorp.com