The final order of Trippant Takeaways for 2022 features images of Messi at the Fifa World Cup, stories that shaped the sporting year, last-minute Christmas deals, good and bad news for Google, and some cringey millennial comedy.
CNN on Messi’s viral moment
Finally, and in the most dramatic circumstances imaginable, Lionel Messi is a Fifa World Cup winner.
Football’s greatest ever player – as we think we’re all saying now – led Argentina to a penalty shootout win over France after an extraordinary 3-3 draw at Qatar’s Lusail Iconic Stadium. The world seems fairly happy with that, outside l’Hexagone and maybe Brazil, and they’ve certainly been talking about it.
A photo added by Messi to Instagram has become the most liked social media post of all time, replacing a photograph of an egg. This one, presumably, was a little harder to produce: CNN spoke to Getty Images snapper Shaun Botterill about how he ended up capturing it.
New Lines Magazine on the trophy lift bisht
Botterill took dozens of other photos that night – including one of Messi lifting the World Cup while wearing a ceremonial Arab garment called a bisht.
The robe was a gift from the Emir of Qatar that was meant to confer upon the Argentinian his new status as a revered leader and champion. That gesture, unprecedented at World Cup trophy ceremonies, was met with some confusion outside the Middle East – not least as it did not appear to have been briefed to the world’s broadcast media beforehand.
And it came to symbolise not just diverging traditions of honouring footballing victors but different perceptions of a unique and controversial tournament.
SportsPro on the industry stories that shaped 2022 and predictions for 2023
Qatar 2022, of course, was just one chapter in an extraordinarily busy year in the sports business.
The team at industry title SportsPro have chronicled a whole lot of it, from the fallout of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to controversy around Beijing 2022, sponsorship’s crypto craze and crisis, Uefa Women’s Euro 2022 and much more besides.
They’ve condensed it all into their usual comprehensive, multimedia annual review – and then made a few short predictions for the 12 months to come.
The FT on the NFL’s Google result
There’s just about been time for one last seismic sports media deal to end 2022: the NFL has confirmed that Google’s YouTube TV will take its Sunday Ticket domestic rights package from next season, replacing DirecTV.
The partnership is worth at least $2 billion a year and had long been earmarked for a big tech player, with Amazon and Apple also linked. It has come later than expected but Silicon Valley is now making real inroads into the sports broadcast marketplace.
The Drum on the best time to launch a Christmas ad
Have you done your Christmas shopping yet? Was it wrapped up months ago? Are you nervously eyeing the door for deliveries? Or heading out of it for some last-minute buys?
Here’s another question: how late can brands run their festive campaigns?
Wired on how companies could weaponise ChatGPT
The impact of ChatGPT will be a running topic of conversation through the next few months and beyond, with Google reportedly issuing an internal ‘Code Red’ about the AI-powered chatbot’s potential commercial influence.
Incidentally, if you ask ChatGPT how ChatGPT will be used to sell products in the future, you get a pretty comprehensive response. But you’ll probably still learn more from this Wired piece about its possible use as a potent sales and customer service asset.
Vox on the decline of ‘epic bacon’
Time passes. Years end. And dominant forms of online comedy and culture are deemed ‘cringe’ by the generations that follow.
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Thanks for following the Takeaways in 2022. Best wishes for the festive season and see you in 2023.
