Why Michael Jordan and Caitlin Clark Are Running Back a Classic Gatorade Campaign

More inclined to repurpose than reminisce, Gatorade brought back its “Is It In You” campaign with a new cast of athletes and renewed purpose.

First unveiled by Foote, Cone and Belding Chicago in the late 1990s, the “Is It In You” campaign was a sports marketing classic that featured black-and-white images of athletes dripping with Gatorade-colored sweat that made consuming the sports drink the difference between success and failure—even for accomplished pitchman Michael Jordan. 

As PepsiCo’s Gatorade and creative partners TBWA\Chiat\Day reconsidered the campaign for the modern era, it brought back Jordan to narrate the new 60-second lead spot—”It Hasn’t Changed”—and added Caitlin Clark, A’ja Wilson, Jayson Tatum, Josh Allen and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone to address the needs and concerns of a new generation of athletes.

“There is a significant rise in youth participation declines,” said Anuj Bhasin, Gatorade’s chief brand officer. “Sports isn’t the way that it was before for them.”

Bhasin cited Gatorade’s research that found that 53% of young athletes stop playing because of external pressures including mental health, criticism, doubt and hype culture. However, clinical data suggests that may be an underestimate. The American Academy of Pediatrics found that 70% of athletes under the age of 13 drop out of youth sports after a combination of overtraining, overuse injuries and burnout.

The brand believes athletes’ stories of adversity can reverse that trend.

A team effort

Debuting during Game 4 of the NBA Western Conference Finals Tuesday on TNT, the campaign’s initial ad serves as a launching point for not only an out-of-home campaign but a deeper dive into the struggles and successes of each Gatorade athlete.

As behind-the-scenes footage from the ad’s shoot points out, Gatorade will be following Tatum and his Boston Celtics into the NBA Finals’ Clark through her first season in the WNBA’s Indiana Fever; Wilson as she and her Las Vegas Aces vie for a third-straight WNBA title; Allen from his days as an unrecruited high school prospect to quarterback of the Buffalo Bills and McLaughlin-Levrone as she chases even more Olympic gold in Paris.

“We’ll be bringing in every single Gatorade roster athlete to launch this with us at the same time,” Bhasin said. “We’re going to talk about each of their ‘It’ factors in a compelling way to resonate with consumers.”

That lineup includes Gatorade’s 2023-2024 National Football Player of the Year DJ Lagway out of Willis High School in Texas, who’ll be making his debut at quarterback with the University of Florida this season. Bhasin noted that the campaign will play a large role for Gatorade during the launch of the college and NFL football seasons and as Gatorade places emphasis on athletes in women’s flag football as it prepares for its Olympic debut in 2028.

Renewed, not retread

As the brand prepares to celebrate its 60th anniversary next year, Gatorade is leaning heavily into its on-field roots as a drink developed by University of Florida scientists specifically to help its football team. However, the definition of Gatorade has expanded recently as the “Gatorade portfolio” grew to include offshoots like Gatorlyte and the company’s Gatorade ID loyalty program as well as brands like Propel, Evolve, Fast Twitch and Muscle Milk. 

Bhasin noted that occasionally refreshing the brand’s legacy details helps it carry the narrative from generation to generation.

“What we’ve learned at Gatorade is that the most iconic brands are the ones that are the most consistent and that are modernized with the most consistency,” Bhasin said. “What we’re seeking to do is be consistent and leverage assets we know people love.”