SPRITE HOOPS
Sprite challenged us to go beyond a campaign and build a world for their new partnership with the NBA. A product first movement designed to live everywhere, placing Sprite at the centre of the fan journey from fridge to arena floor.
This is not a seasonal activation. It is a platform built to scale and endure.
Sprite and the NBA share a long standing, culture driven relationship rooted in basketball itself. For decades, Sprite has been embedded in the sport through iconic campaigns and athlete partnerships. That history creates an authentic foundation for a collaboration that feels earned, not applied.
The ambition was to transform this legacy into a unified identity that emotionally engages fans, increases rate of sale, and recruits new consumers across 17 cities. The system had to bring together Sprite, the NBA, and individual teams while flexing across SKUs, channels, and environments including retail, OOH, digital, social, and in venue.
First came ‘Sprite Hoops’, a dedicated brand mark designed to anchor the campaign and future basketball activations. Created as an umbrella for all basketball-related touch points, it is a flexible, future-proof device that brings clarity and longevity beyond a single season. A timeless mark, built to live confidently both on and off pack.
At the heart of the identity is the fractured court, a modular visual language inspired by basketball the geometry from court markings. It creates a flexible framework for layering team logos, city landmarks, and cultural icons, while keeping Sprite green at the core. Additionally a tab device inspired by trading cards features in the design and elevates each can from beverage to trophy, reinforcing collectability.
Each can amplifies its local relevance by highlighting key aspects of its city, making collectability personal and scarcity geographical. Fans collect their own city first, then seek out others, turning local pride into a broader cultural chase.
From a commercial perspective, this shifts how people see value. Instead of focusing on a single purchase, price becomes less of a concern as buying feels more like a growing collection. Different variants tell their own stories, and the product itself becomes part of that narrative. This approach relies less on advertising, letting the shelf, the unboxing experience, and the joy of collecting speak for themselves.
This design system brought to life 17 bespoke NBA cans and multipacks that instantly grabs attention on the shelf, radiating both the excitement of basketball and a sense of freshness. Each can and box feels like a bold graphic print that a fan would proudly hang on their wall, more like a collectible piece of art than just packaging.
The designs aren’t just visually striking; they connect with fans on an emotional level, turning every can into a part of the fan experience and making the act of collecting feel just as rewarding as the product itself.
We took the new packaging system and brought it to life across retail environments, featuring giant hero cans, illuminated displays, and immersive shelf experiences. The system scales effortlessly across out-of-home advertising, in-venue jumbotrons, digital platforms, and social content, ensuring a consistent and attention-grabbing presence everywhere fans encounter the brand.
But the campaign doesn’t stop at packaging. The bold graphics extend into merchandise, from jerseys and hats to duffel bags, transforming Sprite Hoops into a lifestyle brand that fans can wear and showcase, not just drink. Every touchpoint reinforces the connection to basketball culture, making the brand feel alive on the shelf, online, and in real life.
An in-depth retail toolkit was developed to ensure the packaging and its placement worked together to guide consumers from first glance to purchase. Every touchpoint was designed to build momentum, from bold end-of-aisle unit displays to shelf wobblers and secondary signage.
A cohesive visual language tied it all together, creating a clear, engaging story that cut through clutter, captured attention, and made the path to purchase feel effortless.
What begins as a packaging brief becomes a fully fledged brand platform. We unify 17 NBA franchises under a single, iconic identity. By putting the product at the centre of the campaign, we transform a simple transaction into a moment of fandom. Sprite does not just show up for the season. It becomes part of basketball’s visual culture.
Ride or die fans do not just engage. They belong. They feel part of a cultural movement, not a marketing moment. That impact is impossible to measure, yet it represents the highest value a brand can create.
Pure fandom.
Thanks
to Matt and the Sprite team
