TORONTO – Marvel enlisted two of Italy’s most famous football captains, Francesco Totti and Alessandro Del Piero, to help herald the release of Captain America: Brave New World in Italy. Starring as the World War II Superhero is Anthony Mackie. The Louisiana-born actor made his debut in the Eminem Biopic 8 Mile (2002), and eventually earned global recognition playing Falcon in Captain America: Winter Soldier (2014). For Italians [and the rest of the world] the crossover promotion makes perfect sense since football icons enjoy as much fame globally as celebrities do in Hollywood. 

The ad, titled “3 Capitani”, begins with DAZN’s Giusy Meloni reporting outside the Olimpico in Rome. “We are still here waiting for the captain to arrive, there is great excitement but the captain has not shown up”. Cut to a bar scene where Totti and Del Piero’s aperitivo is interrupted by the news of a missing captain. The scene is also a throwback to La Gazzetta dello Sport’s 2002 vignettes poking fun at Totti’s Barzellette – in which the two Azzurri traded barbs.

The ad follows Totti and Del Piero’s race to the stadium which includes them jumping over a vespa, stealing a soccer ball and juggling it all the way to the Stadio Olimpico. All this to prove who the one true captain is – only to discover that fans are waiting for Captain America inside the stadium. Mackie reflected on the shoot, “It’s not every day you get to hang out with legends like Totti and Del Piero. Their presence alone makes this special for me and all the fans involved”.

Beyond the fun and jokes was a smart campaign run by Marvel, playing on the admiration of two franchise football players, who in Italy are known as “Bandiera” players. That is, one-club athletes who become the flag bearers for their teams. Both Del Piero and Totti dedicated their careers to Juventus and Roma, 19 and 25 years respectively. The World War II super soldier, or Captain America as he’s known, is the embodiment of patriotism through leadership and perseverance. These qualities resonate well with the careers of both athletes.

Del Piero: “I have no regrets about my career. I don’t regret the decisions I made, including the downgrading of Juventus to Serie B. It was a difficult choice, but I’m still happy to have made it because I thought it was right. I wasn’t looking for more money or other advantages, since Turin had already given me a lot, becoming captain and staying for 19 years I experienced everything, from the top to the flop, and I am satisfied with it”.

Totti: “For me the fans were the most important thing in my career, they pushed me, they helped me, they supported me, they made me feel different from the others. Luckily, I had them by my side until the very end”.

(Photos courtesy of La Gazzetta dello Sport)       

Massimo Volpe is a filmmaker and freelance writer from Toronto: he writes reviews of Italian films/content on Netflix