Sochi Olympics Ambush Branding

The 2014 Sochi Olympics are over and we’ve recapped the most creative marketing by a few brands who didn’t pay the price to be official sponsors.

The Unofficial Most Interesting Man In The World
Dos Equis racked up points with a commercial featuring sexy winter sport athletes that were not actual Olympians. With no actual mention of the word “Olympics,” Dos Equis aced their Olympic-related campaign with a much smaller price tag.

Tweeting For Hospitality 
#SochiProblems was spreading like wildfire. Airbnb was spot-on in their real-time marketing by tweeting to journalists who were dishing out complaints with witty suggestions of why Airbnb was the place to stay in Sochi.

Great Marketing Exercise
Metro stations in Moscow installed machines that offered free rides to any passenger who did 30 squats. By posting a viral YouTube video, city officials generated some great PR and got people engaged and excited for the Games.

Catching Big Airtime
Burton slapped five-feet wide logos on the bottom of American snowboards. By legally tiptoeing around the rules of advertising sizes on gear, it’s safe to say every viewer saw their brand. Burton practically made spinning, flipping billboards.

6-Year Marketing Stunt
After being handpicked by the Princess of Tonga solely on his athleticism in 2008 the country’s first winter Olympian came to exist. This luger then officially changed his name to Bruno Banani after qualifying for the Olympics to match his primary sponsor, Bruno Banani Underwear. Now whether or not this marketing-scheme name change was morally right, it sure created buzz.