From Sponsorship to City Presence: Mizuno at the Uniper Düsseldorf Marathon 2026

As exclusive sponsor of the Uniper Düsseldorf Marathon 2026 Mizuno wanted to leverage the sponsorship to make the brand visible during the event and specifically contribute to brand awareness in Germany. The goal was to reach not only the runners, but also spectators and sports-enthusiastic Düsseldorf residents experiencing the marathon weekend.

From Osaka to the Rhine – a 3D origami staging translates Mizuno's Japanese brand heritage into the spirit of the Düsseldorf Marathon weekend. Origami as a cultural symbol of Japan, combined with the dynamic spirit of a city marathon – a creative that translates global brand DNA into a local moment.
The creative was deployed across two channels with clearly distinct tasks: Display in-banner video ads targeted the sports and running-enthusiastic audience, while City Light Posters along the marathon route and at high-traffic touchpoints in Düsseldorf anchored the brand in the cityscape. The synergy of both channels created a recognition effect between screen and street space – seeing online what was encountered in real life offline.

The display campaign achieved a viewability of 81.64%, a value significantly above the benchmark. On marathon Sunday, the CTR reached 0.92%, more than double the campaign average – a clear signal of local relevance during the event. In parallel, the OOH campaign generated >4 million gross contacts and secured the physical brand presence in the cityscape.