Volkswagen bringing 50 years of GTI pure passion to World Cup fans

New advert celebrating 50th anniversary of GTI cars is being screened during World Cup matches.

• Advert celebrates GTI fans and communities from 1976 to the current day
• 30- and 60-second versions of the advert for TV, cinema and video-on-demand
• Advert to be screened for the first time at 19:55 on 4 July when Canada play Morocco

Milton Keynes – Football fans everywhere are relishing all the thrills and excitement of the FIFA World Cup, and Volkswagen is joining the party by celebrating 50 years of GTI pure passion.

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Volkswagen GTI cars and the true passion their owners have for these iconic models. Generations of drivers around the world have enjoyed making memories in these sporty cars for the past five decades. Volkswagen is celebrating this with a new advert, which can be seen during TV breaks in World Cup matches beamed live across the UK.

The advert takes viewers down memory lane, with images and music that encapsulate the story of GTI cars and celebrate the joy and pure passion of their owners. It starts in 1976 with the excitement of ‘new car day’ for a dad and his daughter, then takes people on a journey through cultural highlights of the following decades mixed with family holidays and driving pleasure. It ends with a glimpse of the future, the ID. Polo GTI, and a couple behind the wheel of the anniversary-special Golf GTI EDITION 50 – the fastest and most powerful production Golf GTI to date.

When and where can people see the advert?
Two versions of the advert – 30 and 60 seconds long – are being shown on TV and online video-on-demand channels from 4 July; many cinemagoers watching The Odyssey will also be able to see it from 17 July.

Television slots are booked for eagerly anticipated live matches from the World Cup, including:

• Canada v Morocco on 4 July (19:55 BST)
• Brazil v Norway on 5 July (22:05 BST)
• Switzerland/Algeria v Colombia/Ghana on 7 July (23:20 BST)
• Canada/Morocco v Paraguay/France on 9 July (23:20 BST)

‘World Cups bring fans and communities together to enjoy something they are passionate about, and our new advert shines a light on how GTI drivers have been doing the same thing for the past 50 years,’ said Sarah Cox-Thornley, Head of Marketing at Volkswagen UK.

‘People all over the world have memories that are intertwined with GTI cars. We wanted to celebrate that and give people an enjoyable trip down memory lane. Celebrating 50 years of pure passion has been an absolute joy for the team, replicating real customer stories and featuring some of our fans’ own content is a true honour.  Having such equity in the three letters – GTI – is something we had to celebrate in this milestone year.’

The campaign will also feature around other major viewing moments over the coming month, including Formula One and popular entertainment shows such as Celebrity Gogglebox and Bake Off: The Professionals.

When and how did the GTI story begin?
The Volkswagen GTI story began in the early 1970s as a ‘Sport Golf’ project, led by a small team of Volkswagen employees in Germany. The car made its debut in 1975 at the Frankfurt motor show and was launched in 1976; it quickly came to define the hot hatch formula, offering sports-car performance in an affordable, practical compact car.

Just 5,000 units were planned initially, but in the end 461,700 first-generation Golf GTI models were sold worldwide. More than 2.5 million units have been produced in total so far – a continuous lineage across eight generations.

Other Volkswagen models to bear the famous GTI badge over the past 50 years include the Polo, Scirocco, up!, Lupo and even the Passat. The first-ever all-electric model, the ID. Polo GTI, is due to go on sale soon in the UK.

Golf GTI pure passion and soccer (and more) memories – the perfect match