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Was Zinedine Zidane’s Retirement Just a Clever Marketing Ploy?
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Some advance warning: This post is going to be mildly critical of Zinedine Zidane. Nothing too harsh, because – as for many people – he was one of my favourite players to watch. The vision, the touch, the roulettes, the shiny bald patch. Loved it. But that’s also the reason I’m about to mildly criticize him. Don’t worry, this will all make sense in a minute.
My disappointment with Zizou is as follows: The man retired from football in July 2006. That’s well over three years ago. Yet despite no longer being a professional footballer, Zinedine Zidane still keeps trying to sell me things, usually things branded with three stripes.
Most recently he’s been fronting the “Every Team Needs…” campaign, which is – no question – an excellent set of ads.
But, aside from the question of whether someone who is no longer a professional footballer should be allowed to tell us which boots to wear (my answer: maybe) I can’t shake the suspicion that Zidane is such a great marketing frontman because we’re all being denied the chance to see him in action.
I know, that sounds a little conspiracy theory-ish. Maybe it is. But hear me out anyway.
My (conspiracy?) theory is that we all still wish Zidane was playing. Vision, touch, roulettes, shiny head, etcetera. We can’t though, because he hung up his boots a few years earlier than he needed to (can you imagine if he’d joined an MLS team instead of retiring in 2006?). As a result of this earlier than (we) wanted retirement, we’re all still desperate for a glimpse of the great man. So, Adidas and Zizou are exploiting our desire to see him back in action and involved with football, by using it to sell us products.
Check out this recent video for an example:
Thousands of Japanese fans poured into a stadium – a stadium! – for the launch of the new Adidas Predator boot. But really they turned up for a glimpse of Zizou in action. I don’t usually watch promo videos (mostly because I can’t afford any new boots) but I still clicked play and sat through it. Because I was hoping to see Zidane in action. Which I did, but only towards the end of the video, after I’d absorbed the three stripe corporate message.
Oh c’mon, Daryl, how long have you been following football? A retired big name footballer becomes an advertising icon and you’re surprised? Zidane is just one among many such examples – Pele, Maradona, etc. have all done this. Veteran Brazilian and Argentinian footballers are major advertising icons in South America. There’s absolutely nothing unique about this. Not to mention footballers currently still playing, like Henry and Cronaldo.
Why fixate on Zidane? And btw, he was just as much an advertising icon when he was still playing.
And just like a lot of retired footballers, Zidane has also immersed himself in charity work, organizing charity matches, intensifying his work with the children’s charity he’s worked with for years (it’s a charity project focusing on kids with a rare blood disease, I forget the name, leuco-something), and his ongoing participation in the world’s largest children’s football tournament held annually in September in France. Now of course he’s working with Real Madrid. He also made a surprise appearance in the US’ biggest soccer youth camp this past summer, playing with the kids in their training sessions.
Much ado about nothing.
Posted from 
United States
lol @ 1:02, dude with a surgical mask.
“i really want to see zizou…but i don’t want to get swine flu!”
Posted from United States
Are you deliberately trying to piss off Zidane’s female fans?? I miss Zizou too but why are you focusing on his relatively few ad campaigns? Compared to someone like David Geckham who pitches anything and everything, Zizou has been remarkably under the radar. As mentioned above, the majority of his appearances post-retirement have been for ELA (European Leukodystrophies Association) an organization he is the ambassador and chief patron of. He has been a tireless and devoted fundraiser for them and guess what? his efforts have paid off. Check this out:
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-11/ea-tcs110509.php
http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-sci-gene-therapy6-2009nov06,0,1848965.story?track=rss
Hello?? were it not for ELA, were it not for Zizou, these researchers would not have had the funding that has allowed them to accomplish this modern miracle. This is more important than any stupid soccer game or the occasional Adidas commercial. He is helping to save children’s lives. This is the stuff that you should be reporting about.
Posted from United States
Ł3 Million.
Its what Zidane has made from commercial exploitation of his headbutt. On its own.
Posted from 
United Kingdom
I’m sorry but what kind of commercials did he make related to the headbutt? Maybe I am dumb, but does he get payed for the footage that is shown of it or what? I can’t really follow here. How much has Materazzi made, by the way? Because he did indeed make an ad featuring it.
How is this Zidane’s fault? Sounds like it is our own lol. And tbh I like the legendary status of a player being used in marketing- especially if its done in a good way like this is. I mean technically Platini and Beckenbaur were in that adidas + 10 commercial too. Plus adidas has always marketed for the “magic” aspect of football- the touch and finesse rather than the speed and power of nike. They have Kaka while Nike has CR7. Zidane fits in perfectly with them…
Posted from United States
Whatever Zizou does is right.
Posted from 
Netherlands
Most of the civilized world are still waiting for Zidanes apology to Materazzi.
He will always have that black stain of his disgraceful exit in the world cup but a nationalized
apology will help to lighten it.
Posted from 
Canada
why should ZIDANE apologise to MATERAZZI?
MATERAZZI used offensive racist comments on him, so in return ZIDANE hits him back. for his actions he was red carded on the field and off the field he did some community work as punishment by FIFA … case closed!!!
yes MATERAZZI apologised but may be he realised (or made to) that what he did was actually wrong to a fellow athlete.
Zidane and france lost more than just a game because of MATERAZZI’s unprofessional behaviour… he doesnt need to apologise
Yeah, I’m pretty sure that Materazzi’s reputation took much more of a hit than Zidane’s in the aftermath of the headbutt.
Posted from United States
I think Materazzi never really apologised. It has certainly never been made clear what exactly was said. I highly highly doubt that what Materazzi claims he said is what he actually said. I don’t think FIFA would’ve banned him for a couple of matches for saying he’d rather sleep with Zidane’s sister. I don’t think Materazzi has ever really voiced his regret for what he did. I recently read an interview where he basicly declared himself the hero of the final and Zidane’s victim. Honestly, if someone had insulted me like that and ended up making commercials about it and wrote books about it, I wouldn’t feel like saying sorry for having overreacted either. 
And did Materazzi ever have a reputation to hit? This guy wasn’t headbutted several times by different players for nothing…
So tired of the waiting, the rumors. I just want Zidane to play a little bit, ride the pine for France a little bit…redeem himself…
If anyone sees that ball kicked into the stands on ebay, let me know. I am a click away from transfering my life savings to paypal…..
@ Elliot from Canada : And which world might that be that you live in that is waiting for an apology?? schlampe, please you sound like Glenn Beck and about as smart…the only “black stain” here is the one on your latest CAT scan where your brain should be. i guess you’re one of those sheeple that live and die by the sacred word of the press release. Scripted words are cheap and Zidane has nothing to apologize for. And Materazzi IS a racist and has made very xenophobic comments recently but since he’s nothing but a footnote no one outside of Italy gives a rat’s ass about him or bothers to make a fuss about it.
Posted from United States
@Talia,
No need for personal insults in the comments. Please stick to football.
Guys and gals:
You know very well:
Money talks.
And money makes the world go round.
Why do you get excited ? You ought not to waste your time.
Well, at least not on this.
Talia,
Regrettably you display the same class Monsieur Zidane did in his final game.
What about Pele a couple of years ago with Puma? He’s like pushing 70 and he’s still dying his hair black trying to fool the “target consumers” out there that he’s just walked away from a Cosmos match or something.
Let Zizou make his money and leave him alone for crying out loud.
Posted from United States
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well I think you can be critical of his advertisement contracts. I think there are too many of them too. (but I do admit I totally enjoy watching them) but I highly highly doubt he would hang up his boots and give up the last years of his career to make more advertisment. when you saw him during the last seasons of his career it was evident he wasn’t as good as he used to be anymore. I think it was sheer luck that he managed to get this sensational form during the world cup. I think the last games we saw of him were actually a shiny image that fooled many people. I don’t think he would’ve ever been as good as he used to be again for a whole season. so I think it was his personal choice to stop before the public saw him lose his ability more and more and it had nothing to do with advertisment deals. Of course Adidas knows we miss him and uses that but they would be foolish not to.
Actually most of Zidane’s appearances after his retirement have been related to Danone charities and ELA (an organisation that fights against a fatal brain disease) and his appearances for Adidas are all in all IMO not enough to think his retirement had anything to do with them.