Lunch Garden and VML win food war at the Euros

‘Fondue better than Goulash’, ‘Schnitzel better than Baguette’, or ‘Pasta better than Paella’, the food wars were an unmissable phenomenon at the European Championship. Football fans tried to outdo each other with humorous signs, each promoting their culinary favourites. VML saw this as a perfect opportunity to score for Lunch Garden, as fans of Belgian classics can always turn to them for a delicious plate of 'stoofvlees' (Flemish beef stew).  

For the match against France, the agency had a hundred signs printed with the slogan ‘Stoofvlees better than Coq au Vin’. This time, they weren't handwritten, but designed in the clear, recognisable style of Lunch Garden. On the day of the match, a promo team went to the fan zone in Düsseldorf to distribute the signs. Supporters who managed to get clearly visible on camera during the match with their sign could look forward to a tasty reward.

Even before the match, beef stew suddenly seemed to be a sharing dish, as fans and the press massively shared images of the signs on social media and news sites. But the real highlight of this match came during the halftime when Sporza switched live to the stands for an interview with our national hockey heroes. Behind them sat Antoine, proudly holding his sign in view for more than a minute and a half for nearly 2 million Belgian viewers.

For this delicious promotion, the man from Aartselaar received an equally delicious reward, as Antoine can eat beef stew or other Belgian classics for free at Lunch Garden for a year. After the match, Antoine was sought and found through a call on social media, where the stunt was also claimed by Lunch Garden. Despite the defeat on the field, Belgium was clearly the winner off the field.

CREDITS 

Client: Lunch Garden ​
​Client contact: Ifke Nauwelaerts, Louis Bracke
​Agency: VML Belgium
​Chief Creative Officer: Klaartje Galle
​Executive Creative Directors: Arjen Tarras, Kasper Janssens
​Creation: Tomas Van Loon, Patrick Vermeylen
​Client Manager: Stephanie Romano
​Client Executive: Luca Vinck ​
​Strategic Director: Tom Vingerhoets
​Strategic Planner: Gaëlle Maes
​Design: Emilie Sodini
​DTP: Jan-Bart Debruyne ​
​Agency Producer: Tim Keeren ​
​Motion Design: Mikael Naudet, Karel Van Gucht