How One Creative Agency Turned a Youth Football Club Into a Sportswear Campaign

As we gear up for the World Cup this week, independent creative agency Ourselves has given a Belfast youth football club the kind of campaign treatment usually reserved for global sports brands.

The independent creative agency recently sponsored Holywood FC’s under-12s side, which co-founder Aaron Howard coaches. But instead of slapping a logo on a shirt, the agency created a full identity around the club under the line ‘Touch Grass’.

Think custom adidas kits, campaign films and fashion-led photography shot by photographer Matt Spratt, whose portfolio includes work for adidas, Calvin Klein and EA Games.

The result looks more like a modern sportswear launch than a grassroots football sponsorship. And it’s not just for aesthetics, as Holywood FC will use the images and films to attract more young players, showcase what the club is building and make current club members feel part of something bigger.

“People sometimes underestimate how important football shirts are to kids,” says Aaron. “They’re identity markers. They create belonging, confidence and pride. We knew if we were going to do this, it had to feel culturally real to them, not like an afterthought.”

The idea grew from a practical issue. After Howard began helping coach locally, more and more kids started turning up to play, but many had outgrown kits or didn’t have shirts at all. Ourselves stepped in to fund new adidas strips across the teams.

Rather than relying on awkward team photos and standard grassroots football visuals, the agency approached the project through the lens of youth culture, street photography and modern football branding.

The campaign line ‘Touch Grass’ references both football culture and the increasingly online lives of young boys, encouraging participation, friendship and time spent together offline.

Matt explains, “From the outset, we discussed approaching the project through the lens of European fashion and street photography, rather than relying solely on traditional staged team portraits.

“Working in a more documentary style on the pitch brought out something special within the team. There was a natural ease and comfort in front of the camera, alongside moments from those eager to show off a skill or trick they had been practising off the field.”

Holywood FC can now field three under-12s teams and accommodate significantly more young players than before.

For Ourselves, the project is proof that creative thinking doesn’t only belong in advertising campaigns - sometimes it belongs on the side lines of a local football pitch too.