Here's the premise of Secret Tournament: Hidden from the world, 24 elite players hold a secret tournament, with eight teams, and only one rule… "First goal wins!"
Controlling the action is Eric Cantona, who oversees every three-on-three match noir that takes place in a huge container ship docked in an unknown harbor. With Monsieur Cantona at the helm, you can be assured there will be no whining, no judgment calls, and no mercy.
As an icon of danger and intrigue, the scorpion serves as the symbol for stinging play. Seen popping up around the world since mid-March, the sinister and segmented arachnid evokes the speed and venomous strikes that bring victory.
The Teams and Players:
Triple Espresso: Francesco Totti (Roma), Thierry Henry (Arsenal), Hiotoshi Nakata (Parma)
The Onetouchables: Patrick Viera (Arsenal), Paul Scholes (Man United), Ruud Van Nistelrooy (Man United)
Cerberus: Sylvain Wiltord (Arsenal), Lillian Thuram (Juventus),Edgar Davids (Juventus)
Toros Locos: Saviola (Barcelona), Luis Enrique (Barcelona), Freddy Ljungberg (Arsenal)
Os Tornados: Luis Figo (Real Madrid), Ronaldo (Inter Milan), Roberto Carlos (Real Madrid)
Funk Seoul Brothers: Denilson (Real Betis), Ki Hyeon Seol (Anderlecht), Ronaldinho (Paris St Germain)
Equipo del Fuego: Hernan Crespo (Lazio), Claudio Lopez (Lazio), Gaizka Mendieta (Lazio)
Tutto Bene: Tomas Rosicky (Borussia Dortmund), Fabio Cannavaro (Parma) and Rio Ferdinand (Leeds United)
"These players are the personification of everything that Nike football stands for," says Stefan Olander, Nike Europe's Brand Communication Director. "They are creative, exciting and innovative when it comes to finding the single touch needed to score a goal and win a game. They also represent the spontaneity, joy and skill of the game, and hopefully all those features come out in Secret Tournament."
Directed by Terry Gilliam, the Secret Tournament commercial comes in three versions – a three minute, 60 seconds and three x 30-second versions. The action takes place to the scintillating backdrop of a re-mixed version of the Elvis Presley song "A Little Less Conversation." It's the first time one of the King's songs has been remixed.