MTN FC
A Total Soccer Solution for South Africa
Project Info
Client
MTN
Year
2022
Platform
MTN FC
Roles
Strategists, Platform Specification, Content Creation, Content Management, Marketing Strategists
We approached Wishlist Media given their experience in local soccer, and what we found was a company that would go above and beyond what was asked of them. No task is too big or too small, and their out-the-box thinking and willingness to adapt to MTN’s needs means that not only do we plan to expand MTNFC into other countries around Africa, but they are also our go-to agency for anything sports-related. I cannot priase them enough.
Jon Hoehler, Senior Manager
Gaming, Lifestyle and Sports for MTN South Africa
Introduction
Challenge
Despite sponsoring the MTN8 since 2008, MTN had not had a soccer-focused website since the better part of a decade. That meant that outside of the MTN8 tournament itself, they had zero share in the football conversation in the country. And even during the MTN8, they had nowhere to drive traffic other than campaigns across social channels.
solution
Drawing on our combined 35 years of experience in the local soccer market, we sat with MTN’s Head of Digital South Africa and devised a 360 content strategy that would ultimately become MTNFC. The idea was to develop a soccer portal that prioritised quality of quantity and bring content from around South Africa and the world to MTN subscribers. We concluded deals with The Athletic (the planet’s number 1 feature content site) and Mark Gleeson (Africa’s top journalist for decades) to contribute to MTNFC, while also creating daily bespoke and unique videos with current and former players.
results
In just under two years, MTNFC’s subscriber base has grown from zero to past 700 000. It’s proven such a success that a MTNFC Nigeria version will launch in mid-2023, targeting their subscriber base of over 70-million with unique content suited to the market. MTNFC also won the Digital Content award at the 2022 Waspies awards.