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When Sweden failed to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, Nike faced the reality that one of its biggest stars wouldn’t be on the global stage.

It’s 2 a.m. on a small social content set tucked into the corner of a large industrial Parisian film studio. Greg stands face-to-chest with a tired, hungry Zlatan Ibrahimović, eyes dropping to his performance notes. Line fifteen reads: act like a mama grizzly bear protecting her cubs. Greg says, ‘please’. The eye contact that follows feels like an eternity.

Zlatan Ibrahimović is arguably one of the most controversial yet undeniably talented footballers to ever play the game. So when Sweden failed to qualify for the FIFA World Cup, Nike faced the reality that one of its biggest stars wouldn’t be on the global stage.

So we took matters into our own hands and gave Zlatan a moment of his own. Dare to Zlatan was born.

With some of the best writers and art directors in a room, we stepped into Zlatan’s infamous persona, took over his social channels, and engaged fans live. Over the course of a single day, we released content and tweets that built momentum fast. Broadcast picked it up. Football commentators joined in. A live back-and-forth between Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan sparked millions of likes and shares. Merch sold out.

Dare to Zlatan became a best-in-class example — a blueprint for future Nike social campaigns. And while Zlatan didn’t make the World Cup, his persona carried on across campaigns that followed.