FIFA World Player of the Year Ronaldinho is to star in a new television commercial for ASPIRE, as part of a major campaign designed to raise awareness of the Academy for Sports Excellence and its wider mission of identifying and developing future champions.
The Brazilian was last night named as FIFA’s World Player of the Year for the second consecutive season, gaining 960 points in the poll of national coaches and captains.
Filmed at the Barcelona Olympic Stadium (Estadi Olimpic), the commercial promotes some of the core values of ASPIRE, which include competitiveness, ambition and sporting spirit – values which Ronaldinho exemplifies and which will inspire future generations.
The campaign which runs throughout 2006, builds on the global image of ASPIRE at the same time as the Academy reaches out to developing nations with a number of international scholarships for talented student athletes, each with the potential to succeed.
Ronaldinho joins a growing number of the world’s elite sports stars who have supported the Qatar-based Academy. Another commercial in the campaign features “King of the Mile” Hicham El Guerrouj, the world record-setting middle distance runner.
In November, ASPIRE opened the world’s largest indoor sports dome, in a glittering ceremony that featured Said Aouita, Nadia Comaneci, El Guerrouj, Diego Maradona, Rabah Madjer, Ed Moses, Pelé and Mark Spitz.
Over the past year, following major victories with FC Barcelona and Brazil, Ronaldinho has been named as FIFA World Player of the Year and the European Footballer of the Year.
Neil Duncanson, ASPIRE’s Communications Manager, said: “Ronaldinho has provided young football fans around the world with inspiring performances on the field for both his club and country.
“As an athlete who began playing in the streets of Brazil and who has risen to the heights of international soccer stardom, he represents the journey that all young athletes dream of taking when they begin their careers. At ASPIRE there is now a place for those who dare to dream.”
The new and innovative commercial will air during 2006.
ASPIRE, the Academy for Sports Excellence, is a world-class facility that aims to identify, educate and train world-class athletes to compete in professional sports at the highest levels. ASPIRE provides exceptional facilities, including full educational and recreational facilities, advanced dormitories, an amphitheatre, lecture halls, seven outdoor football training fields, and state-of-the-art weight rooms and physiotherapy. The Academy is distinguished by a philosophy which aims to develop the whole student, providing them with full academic and sports development so that they have the widest possible range of opportunities in adult life. ASPIRE TODAY, INSPIRE TOMORROW.
