“Joey, do you like commercials about gladiators?”
If you do, you’re soon to be in luck.
Via Terry Lefton of Sports Business Journal, several major NFL stars recently traveled to Canada for a “gladiator-themed” Pepsi commercial. (“Drink Pepsi, you’ll feel like you’ve been stabbed impaled by a spear in the stomach”?)
The NFL players in the spot include Bills quarterback Josh Allen, Ravens running back Derrick Henry, Vikings receiver Justin Jefferson and Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce, per the report.
Lefton suggests that Pepsi has some sort of arrangement with Gladiator II, which will debut later this year. The commercial comes before that, just as the 2024 season gets started.
So Pepsi is getting paid to push the sequel to Gladiator, and various NFL players are getting paid to push Pepsi as gladiators.
Whether we are not entertained by the commercial remains to be seen.