“Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo.” That’s the name of the Gatorade’s new World Cup commercial featuring the best soccer player in the world, the brilliant Argentine forward Lionel Messi, the potent Spaniard Sergio Ramos, American standard-bearer Landon Donovan and the Brazilian superstar David Luiz, who takes a break from Chelsea FC this summer to host the World Cup in Brazil–where expectations are over the moon. “Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo,” the background music for the ad, is a durable pop confection from 1948 that is synonymous with Cinderella’s dramatic transformation. It first became widely known after appearing in the 1950 version of Cinderella and has remained an anthem for strivers and dreamers, would-be princesses and princes, the world over. In the commercial, the international soccer stars are first seen without glamour–practicing, doing their drills, putting in the hard work that will lead them to their ultimate goals. Then suddenly they step from their labors into the glory of the World Cup, the biggest stage in sport. Gatorade is presumably the magic elixir that enables the transformation of these workaday athletes into futbol icons.
Bibbidi-Bobbidi-Boo, also known as “The Magic Song,” accompanies the players on their journey from anonymity to stardom. Custom-built for the World Cup, the commercial taps these multiple sources to create the broadest appeal. Not only does the selection of players represent the international flavor that makes the World Cup so special and inspiring–but Gatorade reaches across the perhaps narrower demographic of soccer fans to captivate even young Disney fans in princess costumes–hey, princesses need to hydrate too! Gatorade is among the best brands out there at aligning itself with sports. (The company’s name comes from its origins as an innovative formula to hydrate the University of Florida football team–the Gators.) But bringing in the power of Disney, with its tried and true heart string-tugging history? That’s an assist even Messi might admire.
