As the 2026 FIFA World Cup captures the attention of an estimated six billion people worldwide, it has also become the stage for one of the most brilliant and talked-about advertising campaigns in sports history. Global deodorant brand Rexona (known as Sure in the UK) has revolutionized sports sponsorship with a highly strategic placement on referee jerseys.
The brand’s logo is positioned directly under the armpits of every referee and fourth official’s shirt at the tournament. Thanks to this clever placement, the logo remains completely hidden for the vast majority of the game.
“Arms Raise, Logo Clicks”
However, the moment an official makes a critical decision—such as pointing to the penalty spot, flashing a yellow or red card, or holding up the electronic substitution board—the Rexona logo appears exactly where a deodorant logo belongs.
The activation has been widely applauded across social media and professional networks like LinkedIn, with marketing experts commenting:
“Someone had an idea… Every time a substitution happens, the board goes up, both arms raise, and the Rexona logo sits exactly where a deodorant logo should be. Right under the arms. On the biggest stage in football. It only works because of the action. The board going up is the trigger. The arms raise. The placement clicks. You see it and you laugh because it is so obvious and so perfectly timed that you cannot believe nobody did it before.”