Britvic Soft Drinks has signed top England footballers David Beckham and Michael Owen to front Pepsi's promotional team in the next round of the brand's global Ask for More strategy. This is Pepsi's first football-oriented promotion in the UK and will pitch it against rival Coca-Cola which is running promotions around its sponsorship of Euro 2000. The Pepsi Ask for More Football promotion ­ backed by a £3.5m budget ­ will give consumers the chance to visit top clubs, meet the players and win exclusive kit. Beckham and Owen, along with other footballers such as Dwight Yorke and Alessandro del Piero, will feature on pack and on PoS material. Consumers can get a stopwatch radio in exchange for seven ring pulls plus £3.99. In the convenience sector an instant consumer promotion offers a free Beckham poster with Pepsi purchases. The promotion kicks off on March 20 on all pack sizes and variants of Pepsi and 7UP and will be supported by a £1m TV ad campaign. Two-litre bottles will be price marked at £1.09 (Pepsi) and 99p (7UP), and 500ml at 59p ­ but Britvic said retail margins would be protected. Britvic marketing director Andrew Marsden said: "Britvic is looking to grow the entire cola category and increase Pepsi penetration among 16-24 year olds with a focus on 17 year olds." He added that this activity would work in parallel with Pepsi's Ask for More music strategy which features pop stars such as Robbie Williams and Ricky Martin. {{P&P }}

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