Jens Asbjørn Bøgen
A promise is a promise!
The US men’s soccer team secured a major win on Wednesday against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
With a clean 2–0 victory, the squad advanced to the World Cup Round of 16.
But things turned messy.
During the second half, referee Raphael Claus handed striker Folarin Balogun a straight red card after a foul. The American star challenged Bosnia’s Tarik Muharemovic for the ball, unfortunately driving his studs into his opponent’s calf.
The red card means Balogun will miss the upcoming match against Belgium in Seattle, leaving fans furious.
That is when the comfort food arrived.
Free pizza rescue
Back in May, Domino’s promised to help soften the blow if an American player received a red card during the tournament.
The company pledged one million dollars’ worth of emergency pizzas.
Following the red card, fans immediately flooded social media to claim their prize. One supporter asked online, “Red card. Can I get my free pizza?”
Behind the scenes, the company playfully refused to comment on the penalty itself on Instagram. Instead, it focused entirely on the food. “But a promise is a promise for those who signed up…” the company posted, adding, “Check your Rewards on 7/2 to see if you won.”
Article continues below.
Easing the pain
To qualify for the giveaway, customers had to register for the rewards program before the tournament started last month. Following the red card, the chain randomly selected more than 60,000 winners.
Each lucky fan received a free medium two-topping pizza. Winners must claim the prize by August 2. Kate Trumbull, Executive Vice President at Domino’s, explained the clever marketing strategy in a previous statement.
“Soccer gurus know the worst thing to happen in a game is for a player on the team you’re rooting for to receive a red card,” Trumbull said.
Trumbull added, “If that happens to the American squad, Domino’s is here to help ease the pain by giving away Emergency Pizzas. It may not change the outcome of the match, but it can provide a delicious pick-me-up when it’s needed most.”
