Chicken Licken, an iconic South African fast-food chain, together with Growth Agency Joe Public recently launched their latest brand campaign. The campaign features a French soccer coach named José Mercibeaucoup, who takes the South African football league by storm with his unorthodox formations. José Mazibuko as the locals refer to him, was born in France and came to South Africa in 2010 as an assistant kit manager but never left. Although he could have become a global legend with many teams seeking his services worldwide, José decided to remain here and continue coaching The Flaming Birds because of one thing – Chicken Licken.

To generate a buzz for the campaign, Chicken Licken partnered with renowned South African football journalist Lorenz Kohler, who tweeted about José a day prior to launch. Football enthusiasts were intrigued and the hashtag #UndefeatedSinceForever began trending on Twitter. When the campaign finally went live the following day, it was met with an enthusiastic response from football fans all over. 

When asked about the campaign Adam Weber, Integrated Executive Creative Director, commented, “The new Chicken Licken brand ad reminds us of a time when the world was arriving and discovering South Africa. José Mercibeaucoup was one of them and once he found Chicken Licken, he never went back. Director Greg Gray and the team at Romance brought their story-telling magic to José’s meteoric rise from French kit manager to head coach of The Flaming Birds. His undefeated coaching style is all about formations and the twist is where he gets them from.”

Credits: 

Brand: Chicken Licken

Client: Chantal Sombonos van Tonder

Agency: Joe Public

Group Integrated Chief Creative Officer: Pepe Marais

Integrated Chief Creative Officer: Xolisa Dyeshana

Integrated Executive Creative Director: Adam Weber

Integrated Creative Director: Tshepo Tumahole

Integrated Creative Director: Tshepo Mogorosi

Creative Business Director: Amber Mackeurtan

Integrated Group Account Director: Kelly Bardon

Integrated Account Manager: Sonwabile Mkize

Social Media Manager: Kamohelo Moeti

Agency Producer: Di Cole

Media: Juno

Production Company: Romance Films/Cape Town

Director: Greg Gray

Executive Producer: Helena Woodfine

Line Producer: Shannon McDougall

Director of Photography: Adam Bentel

Production Art Director: Keenan McAdam

Stylist/Costume Design: Bridget Baker 

Head of Research: Maghiel van Dorssen

Editor & Company: Ricky Boyd/Deliverance

VFX Company: Chocolate Tribe

Music Studio: Pressure Cooker

Lead Compositor: Elben Schutte

Music Supervisor: James Matthes

Audio: Sterling Sound

Sound Designer: Lorens Persson

Post-production Online: Chocolate Tribe

Post-production Offline: Deliverance