Where were you in ‘22

Move over Mary, Irish betting firm Paddy Power has entered the Christmas TV ad war…and delivered a cracker.

The well-known bookie delivers its take on the true meaning of Christmas as we prep for a festive season basted in World Cup juiciness, served with a side of Southgate.

Celebrating the unprecedented advent of football and festive traditions colliding, the mischievous brand has sidled up to the usual crimbo clichés and promptly ripped them to shreds.

With the help of Shameless star David Threlfall’s unmistakable voice, Paddy Power delivers a festive delicacy, dropping scenes that pay homage to football’s most iconic moments all wrapped up in Christmassy paper and tied in a bow.

Flares clash with turkeys, lads get their knits out, we see what happens when a Christmas carol organist goes rogue, football-obsessed nans kneel before football managers, and former England great Peter Crouch collides with a bouncer in the betting firm’s reimagining of a tale as old as time itself as the striker struggles to find room at ‘The Inn’.

The “Where were you in 22?” campaign is created by Droga5 London and supported by a full suite of razor-sharp creative, all of which pushes the boundaries of bedlam. Everything is on the table (including sprouts!), from OOH, social, press, some kitsch crockery (illustrated by artist Vince Pastiche), a World Cup edition of Charades, Christmas jumpers and even a special build OOH festive light display of that famous Frenchman who delivered an iconic World Cup memory that sticks in the head!