T&P and EssenceMediacom: Snickers’ Mourinho No No’s

Ahead of Euro 2024, Snickers kicked off a bold new chapter in its iconic “You’re Not You When You’re Hungry” campaign with “Mourinho No No’s” – designed to stop hunger-fuelled blunders before they happen, all while deepening its connection with football fans.

With 71% of young fans now saying the online conversation around football is more exciting than the football itself, Snickers saw an opportunity. Tapping into its unmistakable humour, the brand found a fresh way to join the conversation – and become part of the conversation itself.

Enter José AI – a fully authorised AI clone created for fans to control. AI José was trained on post-match interviews to mimic his unmistakable tone, timing and flair. The result? Fans could receive personalised, shareable videos of AI José roasting their friends', suggesting they might need a Snickers to avoid ‘own goals’.

The innovation at the heart of this campaign wasn’t just about star power – it was about serious tech. Behind the scenes, a completely bespoke AI architecture was built from the ground up. It combined three distinct AI engines, each trained on hours of José Mourinho’s press conferences to recreate his trademark wit, tone and delivery. The result? Hyper-personalised, razor-sharp messages that felt authentically José. And to ensure the experience remained safe, Snickers implemented a rigorous 8-layer safety system, complete with humans in the loop.

Rather than fight for space in an overcrowded sponsorship arena, Snickers met fans where they really hang out – in DMs, WhatsApp chats and private groups. With nearly half of consumers’ screen time now spent in these closed channels, “Own Goals” leaned into this shift, creating standout cut-through in spaces most brands overlook.

The tech launch was timed to perfection and teased in the lead-up to Euro 2024 through both José’s and Snickers’ own social channels, including a cheeky nod during the Champions League Final. Fans could visit the Snickers site, type in their own goal moments – from forgotten kick-offs to dodgy group chat predictions – and generate a bespoke José message. As a tasty bonus, each user got a 50p discount on a Snickers bar too.

To fuel the buzz, Snickers teamed up with football influencers, pushing the campaign through a mix of paid and organic content. With safety features baked in from the start, Mars ensured the AI stayed reliably “José”.

This campaign proved a turning point, particularly among younger snackers. It smartly blended football culture, cutting-edge tech and social-first thinking to reconnect with a key audience in a way that felt fun, fresh and totally Snickers.

For brands looking to stay on the front foot with AI and personalisation, "Mourinho No No’s" is a masterclass in hitting the back of the net.