Guinness Kicks Off Premier League Season With a Love Letter to True Fans

As another soccer season kicks off, Guinness wants to be there for fans for every quirky game day ritual, crushing disappointment, and euphoric high.

The Diageo stout brand is marking its second year as a sponsor of England’s Premier League, the world’s largest soccer league, with a community-driven sports campaign. “Lovely Day for a Guinness,” created by AMV BBDO, launches today during the season-opening game between Liverpool FC and AFC Bournemouth. 

Last year, Guinness announced a four-year deal as the official beer and non-alcoholic beer of the Premier League, replacing Budweiser. This is its first global partnership in soccer. 

The new campaign will run across at least 215 live games on NBC in the U.S. and Sky Sports in the U.K. throughout this season. 

A 90-second ad and a series of shorter spots capture intimate, passionate, and sometimes unusual traditions of real fans from all 20 Premier League clubs. In the U.S., the social film “Hope” is narrated by soccer legend and broadcaster Gary Neville, expressing fans’ anticipation at the start of a season. The soundtrack is “All My Friends” by electronic music producer Barry Can’t Swim.

“We wanted to show football culture as it truly is: unfiltered, emotional, and grounded in the truth. These aren’t actors pretending to be fans, they’re the real people who truly show their love for their team week in, week out,” AMV BBDO creatives Will Brookwell and Louis Prenaud told ADWEEK via email. “We think you can feel that in the films and it’s that power that will help this work travel across different platforms and markets around the world.”

For this season, Guinness added new partnerships with clubs including Arsenal, Aston Villa, and Newcastle United. The beverage will be sold at each of the club’s stadiums on match days.

Last year, Guinness activated its inaugural Premier League campaign in 80 countries. It became the number one beer in soccer occasions in Great Britain, according to Alcovision data from March 2025.

“Our first season as Official Beer and Non-Alcoholic Beer of the Premier League has been a galvanizing platform for the brand around the world,” Somnath Dasgupta, global marketing director of Guinness, said in a statement. “The Premier League has enabled Guinness to become part of rituals, traditions, and moments of belonging that enrich the football viewing occasion.”

Since Guinness has been focused on widening its consumer base, including among soccer fans, it is outpacing growth at its owner. The brand saw double-digit growth for the fiscal year 2025, while Diageo’s organic net sales increased by 1.7%.

Guinness added more than 3.8 million new drinkers since 2019, and its Guinness 0.0 beverage is now Great Britain’s number-one non-alcoholic beer, according to Diageo’s annual report.