‘No football players of the national team of Russia’: a Kazan entrepreneur likens the players to Barack Obama
A Tatarstan chain of shops of pyrotechnics and souvenirs joined a flash mob
A flash mob based on the results of the disastrous game of the national team of Russia in Euro is gathering speed in Russia. Participants of the flash mob place avertisments that the players of the national team are not allowed in their establishments. A Kazan chain of pyrotechnical shops ХороShow also joined it. As owner of ХороShow Rasul Sadriev said to Realnoe Vremya, he wanted to express his attitude even not only to the game but their reaction to the shameful defeat this way. Although the members of the national team won't know about the 'boo' of the Tatarstan entrepreneur, there was some effect.
Kazan continuance of the Moscow 'boo'
Ads saying 'No football players of the national team of Russia allowed' appeared on the doors of ХороShow in Kazan. Such ads were placed in all stores of ХороShow and will remain on the doors till the end of Euro.
The chain sells souvenirs and pyrotechnics and is directly connected with sport. It became the official retail operator of the largest sports event in Kazan twice – the 2013 Universiade and the 2015 FINA World Championships. In addition, football fans can also find goods to their liking. But such a critical attitude of ХороShow to our athletes has been noticed for the first time.
This ad placement was a continuance of the Moscow campaign. Similar ads appeared in bars and restaurants of the capital of Russia two weeks ago – on 16 June. Moscow establishments reacted to the defeat of the Russian football players by the Slovakian team like this. After this match, there was a shameful game with Wales where our team not only lost but also demonstrated a complete lack of will. The defeat inflicted by the Welsh players only kindled this flash mob.
'All right, they were eliminated when they lost…'
However, according to the founder of the chain Rasul Sadriev, he did not know about the flash mob of restaurateurs, and not the defeat but the players' attitude made him place the ads.
'I'm a passionate fan of the national team of Russia,' Sadriev tells about his fan ache. 'All right, they were eliminated, but their attitude when they lost… When journalists interviewed them, Golovin whose salary is 67 million said 'Are you f…' or Shatov answered ''What should I be ashamed of?'
To lost and be officially called the worst team in the 2016 Euro! Shame on them! This is why we also decided… a semi-comedy and semi-reality… It was my attitude. There is no negative attitude. It is what I wanted to say. I expressed my attitude to our football players, not to how they play but to their attitude to the fans. Understand that Mutko said that state companies, the budget of the Russian Federation finance them. I pay enough taxes. And it hurts me personally that people earn 60-70 million and say such things.
As Sadriev told, other entrepreneurs also support the ad placement. But he could not name the companies who placed such ads in their shops.
Successors of Obama's trolls
Football players trolled by entrepreneurs is not a unique flash mob. This method was used two years ago in respect to the USA President Barack Obama. After the imposition of anti-Russia sanctions, including the ban on several Russian citizens who cannot be on the territory of the United States of America, signs like 'No USA President Barack Obama allowed' started to appear in cafés and restaurants. And there were different versions of the ad: 'No Obama and his administration allowed', 'No Obama allowed', 'No Obama and Merkel allowed', 'No Obama, Poroshenko and Conchita Wurst allowed', etc.
The flash mob expanded to other establishments: American and European politicians were not allowed to enter photo studios, WC, car care centres and motorcycle communities and even a duty-free store at the Vladivostok airport. Obama could not buy honey, goods from Altay, vegetables and make a copy.
At that time, despite the widely spread flash mob, no American president did not suffer from the attack of the Russian public catering.
'It has had only a positive impact now'
Sadriev doesn't hide the flash mob is PR except being an expression of his personal sadness: 'It is an additional PR if a brand appears in social networks'. As the owner of ХороShow thinks, flash mob is certainly successful.
'All clients, every person who comes here talks about the bad game of the national team of Russia during 30 minutes saying that they must be expelled. Many clients just take photos with the ad and go away. Some of them start to talk about football, then know about our offers and our other activities. It has had only a positive impact now.'
But Rasul Sadriev is unlikely to reach the most important goal – to deliver his attitude to the players. Slutsky's players would not go to Kazan to buy fairs in the next two weeks.