#6 International Superstar

[Ghost]

Career PT5 – Representing Your Nation
Word Count: 607


Greetings! It is I, your former out-of-his-depth beat writer and now fully fledged football agent, bringing you a small update on James Asprey’s career. I don’t have much time to write any more lately, but given my unexpected break from footballing matters during the WSFC, I thought I’d dust off my pen keyboard and shake the rust.


While many of the SSL’s finest players boosted their image internationally at the WSFC – most of whom have gone on to pick up lucrative sponsorships – Asprey’s disastrous campaign with the much hyped, championship-favourite British Isles team did very little for his profile. If anything it probably damaged his reputation. Perhaps the World’s stage was too much for the very private, quietly spoken Welshman.


The very early exit from the competition did provide Asprey with an opportunity, however. Over the remaining weeks of the competition, Asprey flew to various countries around the World promoting his beloved Jamaican distillery that he purchased following his Academy stint at Port Royal (CPT#3 Media Day). The business had been doing well but the extra publicity with a now established SSL star fronting the promotion shoots would surely provide a boost.


From the comforts of home and while Asprey was flying around the World, I put in a call with organisers of the ongoing WSFC tournament and managed to wrangle an ad spot for Asprey’s latest range of Jamaican rum – much to my delight, and I thought much to Asprey’s too.


How wrong I turned out to be.


Upon hearing the news Asprey went silent on the other end of the phone, and for so long in fact I had to check I still had a connection.


“I really appreciate the thought and the effort, you really shouldn’t have.” he finally delivered. I could tell by his voice he didn’t want to reject my efforts but this was something he really didn’t want to do. “It may sound crazy, especially while I’m promoting the distillery around the World right now, but I’m not looking for that kind of attention.”


I was perplexed, it did indeed sound crazy. He’s travelling around the World promoting his business and here I was offering a huge stage on which to do it.


“I’m… a bit confused, James.” I answered after briefly trying to process what he had just told me.


“Yeah that’s fair. Look I do appreciate it, really. I don’t want to come across as ungrateful at all. I just… don’t like that kind of attention. International superstar is not me, that’s not what I want. All I’m doing right now is promoting our new product at locations known for their love of rum. Hopefully they’ll love ours too!”


That sure sounded like the James Asprey I know. Suddenly it made sense, and after all these years of following this man to now being employed by him, I could kick myself for not seeing why my idea was a mistake. I apologised, though Asprey would hear none of it, choosing instead to thank me for the thought and effort once again, before wishing him luck with the rest of his promotion tour and looking forward to his return for the new SSL season.


The WSFC made international superstars of some players and lit a fire in the bellies of those who are yet to participate in a WSFC tournament. James Asprey, however, prefers the less flashy title of “just another SSL player”. International Superstar he is not… or at least not to him.


Thank you for reading once again,
Your former beat writer and current football agent to my personal international superstar.





Approved in previous post

[Nol15736]

Career PT 5

Chicken McTendie has really spread his wings at this point. While Air BnB was a great first sponsor, his agents and family knew if he wanted to reach new heights he had to go bigger. More global. Now what could possibly be more global then Air BnB you may ask? 

Why that would be Amazon! If you head over to Amazon right now you'll see McTendies face everywhere. He is now sponsoring everything from board games, to sports accessories, to clothes. Anything and everything has McTendie. You won't be able to purchase so much as a pack of chewing gum without having Chicken McTendie's face stamped on the package if you buy it from Amazon. 

Who would have thought that Jeff Bezos was not only a football fan, but a Liffeyside Celtic one! He loved the way McTendie was able to spread his wings and cover so much of the field on defense so much that he knew he had to partner up with the large bird man and get his face on everything he could. Not only is it helping to give more coverage to anyone who somehow didn't know Amazon existed thanks to the new patches on McTendie's unifrom. It's also doubling Celtic merch revenue as more and more people have to inquire who is this bird creature on all of their products Amazon is shipping in. Rumor has it the normal smile boxes that Amazon sends out are going to be yellow in the very near future and possibly even have a big orange beak on the front. 

Who knows what the future has in store, but one thing for certain is you won't be escaping the coverage of Amazon or McTendie anytime soon! And without question while Liffeyside is down in league 2 right now, there is nothing that is going to keep them down long with this new partnership helping to sponsor the team.

APPROVED - I need to find the Chicken McTendie boardgame

[gucci]

CPT #5 Link

Sandro da Silva is now the international face of Outback Steakhouse around the world. How did he get this position you ask? Well he actually sought it out. Being Brazilian, Outback Steakhouse was the height of luxury for him and his family when he was young. For him, it was a symbol that he made it, and a sign for the younger generations of Nordestinos that they could do it too. Someday they couldn’t just eat Outback whenever they wanted, but they could be the face of the company.

Now you might wonder, how exactly does Sandro take advantage of this sponsorship? Well, besides the money flowing in from the deal, Sandro gets a bloomin onion at least once per week. Additionally, in the offseason, he takes the whole da Silva clan out to munch down at Outback when back home in Natal. Sure, they go to other places too. Camarões being the big one, but nobody does it as big as Outback in Brazil. People get dressed up to go out to a local mall and spend the whole night at Outback without leaving their table (once you get seated it’s considered rude to eat quickly and pay so that others get to experience the food). So Sandro and his family make a show of it as well. Easier now that Sandro has Div 1 money.

Next season will be tough for Sandro, as his team suffered relegation despite him being among the league’s best fullbacks. However, with Outback on his side, nothing can stop him. His expectation is to completely dominate Division 2 and to be named in the team of the year, and another run to the cup final should be the minimum expectation, having done it twice in a row before that. Look for Sandro to take it to the next level and bring Outback Steakhouse back to its global prominence in the process.

Approved

[zeagle1]

CPT 5

Joao Peixoto had often been called Joe Pie Show Toe many times throughout his career by friends, fans, and even his own teammates! He finally cashed in on this unfortunate nickname this week by signing a deal with Nike to create the world's first toe boots! Like the cursed looking toe socks and toe shoes of yesteryear, but now with cleats on them! This brings a whole new meaning to calling something a toe ball! The toes are built stiffly enough to withstand a match's worth of kicking a ball or the occasional foot stamp by an angry rival, but are also flexible enough to allow for some movement between the toes, maximizing control of the ball! Naturally he is calling the new boots the Show Toe 1's and is unbelievably excited to start rocking them for club and country! In addition to the individual toes on the boot, they also will feature a mesh ankle for maximum comfort while still providing a little stability, a custom molded plastic cleat layout designed to maximize traction and grip in all pitch conditions and materials, and Nike's lightest ever laces to save on weight where ever possible. There will be three inaugural colorways. The primary colorway will be a black and red design honoring Joao's club, Uniao Sao Paulo, featuring the club crest on the tongue of the boot. The second colorway will be a red and green colorway honoring Joao's birth country of Portugal, and will have the Portuguese royal crest on the boot. The final Colorway will honor his longtime home of brazil, and will be green, yellow, and blue like the Brazilian flag. Joao is hoping these shoes are best sellers so he can continue to design new colorways for the Show Toe 1's and maybe even a second edition of the shoes in a few years!

Code:

308 words

Approved. I would wear the Show Toe 1's.

[anuragb]

Career PT #6 – International Superstar
(Link to CPT #5: https://forum.simulationsoccer.com/showt...9#pid99649)

For Andres Pedrillo, the path from a promising young midfielder in Spain to a well-known name in SSL has been shaped by his intelligence, consistency and style. Recognized for dictating tempo, delivering precise killer balls and controlling matches from the midfield, Pedrillo reached a new milestone in his career, his first major international corporate sponsorship.
The brand partnering up with Pedrillo is Adidas, a name that stands for creativity, elegance and excellence in football. The partnership felt like a right match, similar to his playstyle, Adidas represents innovation with simplicity, allowing performance to take centre stage.
The announcement of the deal came after a series of impressive seasons in which Pedrillo proved himself to be one of the most dependable and technically skilled midfielders in the league. His knack for orchestrating plays, shifting the point of attack, and consistently creating opportunities made him not only a crucial player for Liffeyside Celtic FC but also a recognized player on the global stage, representing his nation.
As part of the partnership, Pedrillo will appear in Adidas campaigns that highlight midfield control and creativity. The campaign theme, ‘Control Everything’, showcases players with rhythm, something Pedrillo has showcased as a fundamental piece of his playing style. He will also spot a signature line of boots designed to enhance touch, pass accuracy and comfort, reflecting his strengths on the field.
For Pedrillo, this partnership is more than just a financial achievement. It acknowledges his growth as a player, evolving from a budding talent to a global ambassador of the sport. Representing Adidas at the international level comes with responsibility, which fuels his motivation to keep improving and performing at the highest level. Also, to be an inspiration to the next generation of midfielders who view the game not merely as a physical challenge, but as something to be controlled, understood, and mastered.
This is just the start of Pedrillo’s rise to global superstar!

Approved

[Afrhite]

World Cup Representation


Couple of seasons as past and Mazeed did attract quite the crowd. People around the world and the league are talking about him, saying he was a "steal" from the S21 Draft Class. Since, he accomplished lots of things his younger self playing in the street would have loved. Still, the drive to win a championship is still something that drives him as he claim so close time and time again. However we're not here to talk about that side of the stories.

Previously, a Mango product centric company based in Mexico approached him for partnership, as he's part of the Tenochtitlan Organisation, the contacts were easy to establish. Till this day, Krung Thep can appreciate good mangoes dip in some holy water provided by Pope Goose in half times. Mazeed as always been good socially, still keeping in touch here and there with other team Managers that previously tried to recruit him in the past and certain S21 Draft Alumni such as @Nol15736 and @Beavie. Through conversation with the manager of Tokyo F.C. , they recommended al-Kazmi name to the PR team of Toyota. The conversation went in that direction because Mazeed mentioned that he was very found of the Toyota Supra MK5, thinking the model was extremely appealing to the eye.

With the attention Mazeed had created in the previous seasons, an attempt could be made and perhaps a sponsorship could be establish between both party. Couple of weeks as past since that conversation, during a midnight practice season in Mexico, he received a email, asking him to come to Japan so they can have a talk. It was made possible even with a tight schedule, since Krung Thep was eliminated from the cup... again... he had a little time to spare a trip to Japan to see what was the email all about.

To go traveling there was easier when starting from Krung Thep, so after he was back at Bangkok, no time to rest and straight to Japan. As many of you probably know, Japan is a marvelous country to visit, splendid views and lots to explore. Direction Toyota City, to the Headquarters of Toyota. Accompanied by a translator for the occasion, he got instructed certain tradition and cultural standard so he would not disrespect them by accident. Had the chance to have a tour of the building, seeing how they create vehicule but others realms Toyota are working on.

As much as the trip was very fun, the wait for THE conversation was getting to him, the recents events in the World Cup and in the League made al-Kazmi a bit more unstable. Stressing and overthinking more than he usually did. It was never a guaranteed that he would get the sponsorship, however, he was still getting anxious about it. After getting introduced to the PR team at Toyota, sliding in the conversation some Japanese words he learn on the side, they asked him if he wanted to maybe go on a ride as they felt he was a bit tensed. Lord and behold, someone might have let it slip through the cracks but, he got to go on a ride in the MK5 he was talking about a few weeks ago. During the ride, the Toyota representant that was driving the car started a conversation with Mazeed. Was a bit hard to understand because of the accent but they made an attempt to start the conversation in english :

-Dorou enjoy yourr time in Japan ? How's the coountry been treating you ?

-It's been fantastic so far, arigato, for driving me a bit around

-No problem! We were wery excited to meet rou!

-Really? I'm still surprised that you wanted to communicate with me and my agent about this opportunity

-Oh you already sponsor by us, you sign paper at entrance for no leak information ahbout what rou see in the office. Tha discussion was only to see if what we were told about you. Like our history, you're going through rough times, and we want to show you our support. Gambate Kazmi-san!


They continued their conversation in the car, talking about multiple other subjects. But the conversation made him reconnect with his child self. One that was playing for the fun of the game, one that was there for the spectacle, the thrills of just... be grateful to enjoy the sports for that it was. When they came back to the headquarters, Mazeed showed his gratitude to the representant that in the end was one of the VP of Toyota. The surprised on his face when he learned that, would have made a great meme. They exchanged contacts, said a last farewell to the PR team and the other employee he talked to and left back to Krung Thep. Sponsored by Toyota and receiving a custom MK5 model with the colors of Krung Thep, an envelope on the passenger seat was left there for him.

"Never forget that during a journey, one can never be the best version of themself without going through the lowest of low's and the highest of high's"

Approved

[GHamss]

CPT 5 - https://forum.simulationsoccer.com/showthread.php?tid=1289&page=9

Snor Lax is from Japan, but is currently playing in Ireland while having had his Academy season in Australia and a couple seasons in Hungry. Needless to say, he has been all over the world so far in his career. That, in part, has led to numerous fans and sponsors from around the world looking for the attention of the big man himself. 

As is typical with many sponsored athletes, Snor LAx was most interested in being sponsored by companies that were of interest to him. Anyone that knows Snor Lax, knows that there are typically one of two things on his mind. First and foremost, food. Lax is driven by food so food sponsors are at the top of his list. Next is sleeping. Lax loves a good nap or full nights rest so having a mattress, bedding, pillow and any other company associated with sleeping as a sponsor is a must for Lax. 

Early in Lax’s career, he was sponsored by Vary Vibes. This restaurant based company saw potential in Lax and quickly became his number one sponsor. They even made him a franchise owner and named a couple food items after him, The Lax Bowl. Lax has continued to grow his food sponsorship taking on sponsors from all sorts of cultures and food corners of the world to ensure he gets his fair share of food variety while ensuring the world sees all the delicious food options out there.

 When it comes to sleeping, there has been no shortage of sponsor offers. The largest (pun intended) one is a company that specializes in extra large beds that feel like you’re floating on clouds. The company, Sleep Extreme, even came out with a line of mattresses specifically for the Snor Laxx sponsorship. The line of mattresses was called SnorMax which was meant to provide customers the perfect surface to lay down on. Snor Lax guaranteed a good nights sleep on one of his mattresses.

Approved - No shock that Snor Lax would be promoting better more comfortable sleep!

[Darthus]

Career PT#5

Shingo Takechi has spent a couple of in China playing for the Shanghai Dragons at this point. During this time, he impressed many of the locals with his fearless goalkeeping technique, and ability to make impossible saves. 

One night, Takechi received an e-mail from an unknown source, it stated that Takechi was invited for a dinner with Wang Ling, a Chinese business magnate who owned several companies, chief among them was CC Air, a Chinese luxury airliner. Takechi eagerly accepted, curious to find out why he was invited, and a few days later, a limousine was sent to his house to pick him up.

After a 30 minute drive, the limousine deposited him at the lobby of the Grand Parkway Hotel in downtown Shanghai, this was one of a few luxury hotels owned by Wang, and Wang's personal assistant was there to greet Takechi. Takechi was brought to a private room in the hotel's michelin star restaurant, where sitting there awaiting him was Wang Ling himself. Pleasantries were exchanged, and before any business was conducted, Wang Ling called for the waiters to bring out their dinner, a full 9 course meal filled with Chinese delicacies such as Xiao Long Bao, braised pork belly, fried bamboo shoots... etc. It was only after the meal, and after drinking a copious amount of white wine, that Wang Ling explained the reason he brought Takechi there that day.

Wang Ling explained that, he was mightily impressed with Takechi's performances for the Shanghai Dragons over the course of the past few seasons, and that because of that, he wanted to make Takechi the face of his airline business, CC Air. At this point, Wang Ling called for his assistant, who brought over a contract for Takechi to sign. Part of the deal Wang Ling offered included free private flights for Takechi and the rest of the Shanghai Dragons whenever they needed to travel to an away game, and in return all Takechi had to do was make some public appearances at certain CC Air events throughout the duration of the contract. It was a no-brainer really, Takechi quickly skimmed through the contract, and immediately put pen to paper, officially becoming sponsored by CC Air.

Soon after, Wang Ling even decided to sponsor the entire Shanghai Dragons team, and to this date you can still see some CC Air aircraft with the faces of Shanghai Dragons' players plastered on the side.

Approved - Nice to see the Dragons will be riding in style

[OblivionWalker]

Career Task 5

(word count: 326 words)

With Takeda's star on the rise, offers started to come in fairly steadily for sponsorships and he fulfilled as many of them as he could but the first one where he knew he had really hit the big time was when Honda called.

The largest producer of motorcycles in the world since 1959, Honda's name commanded respect and when Takeda was contacted about a potential sponsorship, it didn't take him long to say yes.

He had very fond memories of flying down roads on the back of a Honda Rebel, clutching onto his uncle Hikaru as they drove at speeds that would have given Takeda's mother heart palpations and naturally Takeda never ratted his uncle out. Sometimes those trips were the only respites he got from school and training and everything else. His uncle always seemed to know when it was time to get out on the road and would be waiting for Takeda with an extra helmet and jacket for him.

With Hikaru still riding that Rebel even so many years later, Takeda was delighted to be able to call his uncle and tell him that he was going to be sponsored by Honda, the company that had given them so many hours of enjoyment. When given the chance to select a motorcycle of his own, Takeda already knew that he was going to get a Rebel like his uncle's and getting onto it felt like coming home, in a way.

Takeda doesn't go as fast in Ireland as his uncle did in Japan, but when he needs some time to get away from things and clear his mind, he automatically reaches for the keys to his Rebel and feels as though time has been rewound, even if it's just for a little while.

Other sponsorships will come and go, but for Takeda, the fact that Honda even noticed him and wanted him to represent them will always be a source of pride for him.