Blog Poll: Netherlands vs Spain World Cup Final

We are down to the final two teams who will play this weekend in the FIFA World Cup Final in South Africa: The Netherlands and Spain. I thought it'd be interesting to do an unscientific poll of Coca-Cola Conversations readers to see who we collectively thought the winner would be. Although I'm not going public with my prediction, I will offer up a few links that represent soccer and Coke from each country. This 1962 Dutch print ad from The Netherlands translates to "When You Pause...Coca-Cola Refreshes You Best!".  This 1954 calendar page from Spain translates to "Tastes Good Ice Cold." Let us know below who you think will celebrate with the FIFA trophy this weekend:

On This Date in 1982...

On July 8, 1982, Diet Coke was introduced to the marketplace. Coca-Cola USA President Brian Dyson declared that it was "The most significant new product introduction in the entire 96 year history of The Coca-Cola Company." It was also the most carefully developed and researched product in our history at the time. 150 different graphic designs were considered before we landed on the final desired look, and you can scan through the milestones of Diet Coke's history by clicking here.  Also, I always laugh when I see the photos of these very 1980s promotional items that we produced along with the launch.

 

Cool off with a Coke - 1957 TV Commercial

The "dog days" of summer seem to be have arrived, albeit a little early.  You can ask our friends who live on the East Coast of the United States. Temperatures in that region have been hitting record highs, including a record high of 103 degrees in New York City. For those of you who need a cool, refreshing idea for a way to cool down, take a look at this 1957 commercial from our Archives.

 

1977 FIFA World Youth Tournament for the Coca-Cola Cup

I'm really enjoying the elimination rounds of the FIFA World Cup. As you prepare to watch the games this weekend, I thought I'd share another Coke and FIFA historical poster from our files. This is a Dutch poster from 1977, when Coke along with FIFA launched The FIFA World Youth Tournament for "The Coca-Cola Cup." This first ever sponsored youth tournament for 16-19 year olds was held in Tunis, Tunisia. 16 countries (five European, two Central American, three South American, three African and three Asian) competed in the tournament, which was held in Tunisia. In the same year, we launched the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Football Development Program -- an educational effort designed to share soccer technology, teaching, training, administration and officiating in up to 100 countries where soccer was a relatively young and growing sport.  Also, don't forget that this weekend is the final weekend to see the 2010 FIFA World Cup exhibit at the World of Coke.