Even a second can make a difference.”

In a chaotic marketing ecosystem, Javier Hernandez Reta, Global Chief Marketing Officer at Duracell, is making a compelling case for the enduring appeal of marginal gains. 

Last month, Duracell unveiled a three-year global partnership which saw the battery brand become the ‘Official Partner of Added Time of LALIGA’. Launched in Amsterdam with MSQ Sports and Entertainment, the partnership marks a new chapter for the brand. 

The creative approach was rooted in the insight that 8% of goals in LALIGA were scored after the 90th minute. 65% of those goals changed the result of the match.

The extra time provided iconic sporting moments and underlined that these unpredictable moments are football’s most high-stakes minutes.

Added time is where matches and legacies are defined. Jude Bellingham’s consecutive stoppage-time winners at El Clásico, Iago Aspas’ 96th-minute equaliser for Celta Vigo to complete a remarkable comeback against Barcelona in 2021, and Lionel Messi’s unforgettable 93rd-minute celebration at the Bernabéu. 

The extra time advantage

The move marks a significant step in Duracell’s global sports marketing strategy, as the brand moves to deepen its connection with consumers through elite sport. The LALIGA deal marks Duracell’s first European football partnership. 

For Hernandez Reta, it was crucial for the brand to look beyond a traditional sports sponsorship badging exercise. 

“When you are looking to brand building partnership, sports marketing is so crowded, it is so important to be intuitive, be genuine and be able to have an ownable moment,” he explains.

For Duracell, this ‘ownable moment’ sits at the heart of the creative proposition of owning extra time. As games are lasting longer, the team identified the opportunity alongside MSQ Sport + Entertainment.

“It is a genuine human truth,” explains Hernandez Reta. “It is also a reflection of who we are as a brand, our team and our culture.”

Whether on the football pitch or in a creative pitch, Hernandez Reta’s ethos is clear: “We are a team driven by never giving up, even when others give up.” As a brand built on the product benefit of longer lasting power, it is an endurance message which successfully cuts through the noise. “The game doesn’t stop and neither do we,” he quips.

Talent alone is no longer enough

As the World Cup dominates the global headlines, the evolution of sports marketing is at the very top of the marketing agenda. Influencer marketing is ushering in a new era of sports storytelling, bringing a new level of authenticity to the harsh realities of sporting performance. As well as successfully puncturing the gloss of elite sport with simple, silly and authentic storytelling.

With brands lining up to embrace that ever-elusive cultural currency that sports sponsorship promises, questions arise as to whether the industry is shifting away from the simplicity of celebrating raw talent.

“Sports is becoming more and more competitive,” says Hernandez Reta, pointing to the way in which the sports science industry has raised the bar for competition.

“Talent alone is not enough,” he explains, continuing: “If you don’t put in the effort and the hours, then you cannot be successful. Putting in the hours is what it is all about.”

The power of marginal gains

Regardless of the arena, for Hernandez Reta, the extra time and extra effort are where both marginal gains and meaningful change are achieved.

In a chaotic market, where it is all too easy for marketing leaders to become passengers in their own careers, it is a compelling insight. One not gleaned from the pages of marketing theory, but from the passion of his father.

Sharing that he was an avid football player, Hernandez Reta’s passion for the game came from his father, who played professional football for a Mexican team. “He was the best coach in life and in football,” he says, sharing his father’s advice and reminder that ‘the last minute also has 60 seconds.’

It was advice that holds a great deal of meaning to Hernandez Reta. A red thread runs between this foundational belief and a creative execution rooted in the reminder that every single second can make a difference.

Playing the long game

Hernandez Reta’s passion for progress does not come at the expense of the most underrated tool in marketing leadership: patience.

“In my view, it is important for brands to play the long game,” he explains, adding: “We believe in the value of long-term marketing and without it some brands cannot break through.”