• by Danielle Oster , Yesterday

Seeking to appeal to a wider audience, C4 Energy is building its fall campaign around the message that “We Are All Athletes.”

The Nutrabolt energy drink brand launched the anthem ad at the center of the campaign on its Instagram page yesterday. “We Are All Athletes” expands on traditional definitions of the term, applying it to less traditional athletic pursuits, physically demanding work, and everyday exercise.

Super Bowl-winning Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley takes the lead in the spot, which opens on him strolling through a pre-game locker room. As he walks the room, he sees a wide variety of “athletes” of various stripes, nodding to a firefighter holding a can of C4 on his way to his locker.

“Our goal is to evolve the perception of being an athlete beyond stadiums and scoreboards by illuminating the grit, discipline, and drive that lives within all of us,” Craig Lyon, C4 Energy senior vice president, marketing, said in a statement, from “pit crew teams moving with precision, first responders with unshakable stamina, bull riders with raw courage, and everyday people moving through life with purpose and resilience.” 

He added, “Together, they remind us: athleticism isn’t limited to a jersey. It’s a mindset that belongs to everyone.”

According to the brand, none of the cast surrounding Barkley in the ad are professional actors, “only real people that are all amazing in their own way, be it in their sport, their jobs, or their lifestyle in general.”

“We Are All Athletes” will run on streaming TV, live sports on CTV, Meta and TikTok. A complementary social media campaign launched simultaneously will continue running with a series of posts rolling out over the course of the next three months, “spotlighting everyday individuals who embody the same drive, resilience, and power found on any playing field.”

The campaign follows C4’s recent “Home Opener Takeover” experiential and OOH campaign with Barkley, who the brand added to its athlete roster back in May. It also comes on the heels of parent company Nutrabolt expanding its stake in Bloom Nutrition.