It’s like a live performance.
“High school students” are in the spotlight.
Commentary by former Japan national team player Takuya Kawamura (36), “It’s great. I didn’t have an environment like this when I was a high school student. It goes dark. There’s lights. There’s sound.
High school students experience a professional-like production that even the former national team players who are commentators are envious.
What is the aim of the company that supports…
The basketball “U18 Nissin Foods Top League” was held for the first time in 2022.
Eight top-level men’s and women’s schools in Japan participated, and from August to the end of November, they competed against the strongest teams of the U18 generation in a round-robin league format.
Until now, the major tournaments for high school students have been cup matches where “if you lose, you’re done.”
By making it a league format, many players are expected to have the opportunity to participate.
Yuto Kawashima of Fukudai Ohori: “Everyone played with high potential, and there were two or three games where I couldn’t play due to an injury, but (the team) won, so I joined and it’s even better. We will continue to practice so that we can become a team.”
Akinari Sendai/Hito Katahara: “The 1st and 2nd graders had time to experience this tournament, so I think that not only this year but also next year’s team will grow tremendously.”
Akinari Sendai, Head Coach Hisao Sato “We can repeat the game within a certain period of time. After this league game is over, we will play a game against a team that did not participate in the league game, and it would be nice if we could say, ‘You’ve grown as expected.'”
Executive Officer Shinichiro Yoneyama, NISSIN FOOD PRODUCTS HD “I think it’s great that top-level athletes who compete in the world come out of Japan, but in order to achieve that, the base. The base of the younger generation is the bottom. I think it’s important to improve, so I’d like to actively support young people’s sports from that point.”
The match venue is decorated with flashy decorations based on red, with sound effects and announcements like those of a professional match.
In addition, ideas unique to Nissin, such as the “Mop Noodles”, which became a hot topic because they “looked like they just threw cup noodles”, added color to the competition.
Fukudai Ohori, Sota Katamine Head Coach “I think it’s already a luxury.
Nissin Foods Holdings Executive Officer Shinichiro Yoneyama “Our marketing is unique, because chicken ramen never existed in the world. I had a strong desire to create a tournament that would not have existed, and in that sense, I worked with JBA to come up with everything from scratch, such as halftime and the way players entered the stadium. I want to make it a tournament, so I want to make it more entertainment and aim for the NBA.”, “If a company just provides money and sponsors, you can’t do good branding or good training. Players and coaches. There is great value in working together with people and the association.
In addition, it is said that enhancing the experience of young players with a production like this will have a great effect in marketing.
Nissin Foods Holdings Executive Officer Shinichiro Yoneyama “I think it’s called the brand imprinting effect. I think the Cup Noodles that I ate sometimes left a strong impression on me, and I think that having Cup Noodles accompany the club activities of high school students who are really doing their best is the best marketing effect for us. Of course there is.”, “(Regarding the meaning of mid- to long-term support), instead of doing it as a one-time event, it is not just the players, but the coaches, and society, that kind of thing will make basketball even more exciting. If we aim for such a place, I think it will take time in the medium to long term, so we have a strong desire to do it in the long term rather than the short term.In the long term, our brand is a cup. Noodles is a brand that has been around for over 50 years, and Chicken Ramen is celebrating its 65th anniversary.How can we create a brand that will remain fresh even after 100 years? I think it will be possible to do that kind of branding by doing it over the long term.”
(Posted on FNN Prime Online December 19th. The original article ishere）
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