adidas launches campaign vs pressure in sports

MANILA, Philippines -- Negative pressure is one of the things that could hold athletes back.

Sports brand adidas has launched a campaign to counter negative pressure in sports, which gives “five positive behaviors which could help encourage up to 20 million more athletes to play sport more regularly.”

With the theme “You Got This,” adidas, earlier in the month, launched the Sideline Essentials campaign, which would motivate athletes and teach coaches, parents, supporters and teammates how to provide positive reinforcement.

The brand conducted a global study that covered 12,000 athletes across 24 countries, identifying the following actions as having the most negative impact on young athletes’ desire to participate in sport.

These were scoreboard shouting, or reminders of the score during a game; standing back, or giving athletes space when having a bad day; focusing only on the outcome, or concentrating on the result; videogame coaching, or excessive instructions during game play and post-game analyzing, or an immediate post-match analysis.

The study also found that four of five amateur athletes experienced these unhelpful behaviors.

“The ‘Sideline Essentials’ are delivered by coaching icon, Jurgen Klopp and reveal how coaches, parents, supporters and teammates on the sidelines can tackle the most common negative behaviors. They provide high-impact, positive action, which could mean the difference between millions of athletes heading out onto the field or quitting altogether,” adidas said in a statement.

The program was developed by sports experts, and is endorsed by world-class athletes, including NBA superstar Anthony Edwards.

“Competing comes with pressure — it’s just part of the game, but as I’ve grown in my career, I’ve come to appreciate the people in my corner who have always had my back. Like my guy Nick Maddox — since high school he’s been there for me through highs and lows and his belief in me, his support, and his encouragement have kept me going,” Edwards said in the statement.

“He’s not just about the scoreboard, he knows my game, trusts my instincts, and helps me stay locked in. That’s exactly what adidas’ Sideline Essentials is all about — having the right support, on and off the court. Everyone needs a person in their corner, giving them the confidence to push harder and believe they can do anything,” he added.

According to the brand, if coaches, parents, supporters and teammates adopted just one of the positive behaviors from "Sideline Essentials", it could help encourage up to 20 million more athletes to play sport more regularly.

“This latest chapter of the brand campaign aims to help motivate everyone to be a positive influence on every pitch, track and court. We set out to create a campaign to highlight how the everyday actions of those in and surrounding the game can be the difference between a young athlete showing up on the starting line or dropping out,” adidas Vice President for Global Brand Communications Florian Alt said.

“As part of this ambition, we wanted to not only inspire coaches, parents, supporters and teammates but to also give them the tools to help athletes believe 'You Got This',” he added.

adidas is also working with its brand ambassadors to show up for grassroot athletes on the sidelines across the globe.

It will distribute its "Sideline Essentials" to longstanding partners and program.

Recipients will include the Breaking Barriers program across Europe, the adidas Football Collective and With Women We Run, all of which are designed to support grassroots athletes and help make sport equal around the world.