Innovation Friday:
The Role of Johan
Cruyff in Innovation
How one rebel player helped shape our brand
January 31, 2020How one rebel player helped shape our brand
January 31, 2020At PUMA, we talk a lot about a what we call a “culture of firsts“. And while we’re often focused on new and exciting designs and products in the Innovation area, paying attention to our past is just as crucial. There’s one story which goes deep, dealing with the topic of brand loyalty and integrity, and to find out more we sat down for another chat with Charles Johnson, Global Director of Innovation at PUMA.
We touched on this topic way back in 2015, but it’s so important that we want to revisit it, this time with an innovation spin. Let’s travel back in time with Charles, to when the Dutch national team made it to the World Cup Finals against Germany. It was then the true meaning of athlete endorsement made it to the global stage.
CATch up: Charles, set the stage for us. Tell us who Johan Cruyff is, and what happened.
Charles: Okay. Here’s how it went down. Adidas supplied the Dutch national team with uniforms. The uniforms carried the traditional three stripes on the sleeve. Cruyff, now largely considered to be one of the best football players in history, boldly refused to wear the jersey. The rebel brand and the rebel player found their spirit and worked together. It wasn’t just that PUMA paid Johan Cruyff to wear PUMA gear, he felt it in his bones. And PUMA did too.
CATch up: Okay. So what happened next?
Charles: PUMA supplied an identical jersey but with two stripes not three. Back in the day, it was just a suitcase full of cash which determined what players wore. But free spirits in sport made other connections on the road to making a difference. Johan Cruyff’s style of play was like no other at the time. His game is what defined “Total Football“; the completeness of play that is coached and sought after more than three decades after Cruyff did his thing in ‘74.
There is the science behind an innovation but there is also the emotion. Both make the difference. Both are what we stand for in our everyday work.
CATch up: And how does this translate to innovation, and to today’s sports arena?
Charles: Well, today, influencers are key whether they ever did anything everlasting for sport or not. That has it’s place. But endorsement, the signoff that what you are doing matters not only functionally but emotionally has taken a back seat. Fortunately PUMA has the legacy of Johan Cruyff in it’s arsenal of memories. It inspires us to never forget what makes people and athletes tick. There is the science behind an innovation but there is also the emotion. Both make the difference. Both are what we stand for in our everyday work.
