Given the enthusiasm that many Indonesians have for soccer, consumer goods company Procter and Gamble (P&G) launched a social media campaign on Tuesday called â#FansBersatuâ, to encourage fans to develop their favorite local clubs
iven the enthusiasm that many Indonesians have for soccer, consumer goods company Procter and Gamble (P&G) launched a social media campaign on Tuesday called '#FansBersatu', to encourage fans to develop their favorite local clubs.
Fans can vote for their favorite club out of the 22 clubs currently in the Indonesian Super League (ISL) at the Facebook account of Head and Shoulders Indonesia, to give their team the chance to train under Barcelona FC coach Carles Martin for three days in the city of the fans' club.
The voting period will open from Feb. 18 until April 11. The three clubs with most votes will get to the final round where a panel of judges from the company will determine which club deserves to have the opportunity to experience exclusive training by a coach from Barcelona.
'Fans have the chance to submit their photos or videos of their support to the aforementioned Facebook page. They should mention why their favorite club deserves the opportunity to train under Barcelona FC's coach,' P&G Indonesia communications director Bambang Sumaryanto told a press conference on Tuesday.
Bambang said soccer enthusiasts could really give a positive atmosphere to the players.
'They can encourage players to give their best during the match,' he added.
According to the managing director of Asia Pacific FC Barcelona, Xavier Asensi Brufau, the training will be based on values of Barcelona under the phrase 'jogo bonito' (play beautifully).
'Winning isn't everything, it's how you win that matters most,' he said, adding that Barcelona's players had always played 'beautiful games' regardless of the result.
Bambang said Barcelona was interested in the campaign, considering the club had a large fan base in Indonesia. 'Out of 100 million Barca fans worldwide, five million of them are from Indonesia,' he said.
He added that his company was interested in working with the Catalan club as the latter was known for developing home-grown talent.
'Eighty percent of Barca players are from their own soccer school, so instead of buying players they prefer to groom young talent to become the club's main players,' said Bambang.
That was where both parties shared the same vision, he added. In order to make changes in Indonesian soccer, young talent should be developed as early as possible.
'It's hard to believe that Indonesia, with more than 200 million people, has yet to win recognition [trophies] in Asia,' Bambang said.
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