Turkish Airlines’ ‘selfie-olympics’ inspiring commercial wins most viral celebrity spot award

NEW YORK

Turkish Airlines, one of the world’s fastest growing airlines has been awarded the “Most Viral Celebrity Spot” in Advertising Age ‘s 2014 Viral Video Awards for “Kobe vs. Messi: The Selfie Shootout.”

Turkey’s flag carrier company, which was recently voted Europe’s Best Airline for the third year in a row, received its latest award during the fifth annual ceremony held on April 1 in New York City, a press statement released on April 10 read.

The Crispin Porter + Bogusky created commercial originally debuted in December as a part of Turkish Airlines “Widen Your World” ad campaign and features global brand ambassadors and international sports megastars Kobe Bryant and Lionel Messi.

In the campaign that emphasizes the global network of the airline, Kobe and Messi resume their friendly rivalry from last year’s viral “Kobe vs. Messi” ad by trading “selfies” from exotic Turkish Airlines locations, including Red Square in Moscow, The Great Wall of China, the Maldives, Bangkok and Mount Kilimanjaro. Throughout the video, the competitive athletes are seen at various airports consulting the airline’s destination board for their flights. In the ad’s final shot, Messi takes a “selfie” in Sultan Ahmet Square in Istanbul – only to be photo-bombed by Kobe.

With 137.2 million views since its December 2013 debut, “The Selfie Shootout” was recognized for inspiring various online selfie competitions including the #SelfieOlympics, which garnered thousands of participants across multiple social media channels.