Lacoste Play with Icons global campaign 2025 challenges Nike trend

I know the scramble for usable assets and a clear rollout can derail coverage — here’s a concise, actionable briefing on the Lacoste Play with Icons global campaign 2025 that answers what you need first.

Campaign snapshot and creative direction

"Play with Icons" is Lacoste’s 2025 global creative chapter, announced in May and photographed by Tyler Mitchell with creative development by BETC. The campaign reframes Lacoste signature pieces by pairing one ambassador with one iconic garment in intimate, natural portraits rather than high-concept reinvention. Tone: refined, understated, distinctly French — a continuation of last year’s Play Big positioning but focused on everyday relevance and performance-as-dressing.

Below are the five ambassadors and the core visual hooks you should reference in coverage:

• Novak Djokovic — white polo with crocodile emblem, draped in golden netting; “King of the Court” motifs.
• Venus Williams — floor-length pleating, pearlescent tennis ball; sport-luxe elegance.
• Pierre Niney — lounging in Lacoste green; timeless silhouette emphasis.
• Adèle Exarchopoulos — Lenglen Bag used at the hip/as a skirt; accessory versatility.
• Wang Yibo — layered polos on stage amid blue bouquets; performative dressing.

This creative approach creates clear editorial angles for fashion and sports desks: ambassador profiles, heritage pieces made contemporary, and product-led storytelling (polo, Lenglen Bag, layered polos, accessories).

Visuals, press assets and immediate needs

The published coverage lacks a full press kit and high-resolution masters — your first requests to Lacoste/PR should be explicit and prioritized. Essential deliverables to secure:

• High-resolution stills for each ambassador-garment pairing (TIFF or high-quality JPEG, long edge 4,000 to 6,000 px; 300 dpi recommended for print).
• Campaign hero videos (ProRes 422 master where available) plus MP4/HEVC web deliverables in 4K and 1080p, and shorter cutdowns for Reels/TikTok (15 to 60 seconds).
• Behind-the-scenes clips and interview soundbites from photographer Tyler Mitchell and BETC creative leads for editorial color.
• Official press release and photographer/creative director quotes with clear credit lines and caption text for each image.
• A media kit that includes image captions, full production credits, music credits (if any), and sample social copy for local markets.

These items resolve your immediate pain points around usable assets and editorial context.

Rights, translations and usage clarity

The public article does not state usage terms. For editorial and retail planning you must obtain written clarifications on:

• Territory and duration (global vs market-specific, and campaign window).
• Media types permitted: editorial, paid social, OOH, e-commerce imagery, in-store POS, merchandising replicas.
• Retailer sublicensing rights (can partners reformat/translate copy or crop images?).
• Translation and localization permissions for headlines, captions and localized taglines.

Ask PR for a one-page "usage matrix" that lists each asset and permitted uses by territory and channel — it speeds legal sign-off for retailer activations and press reproduction.

Rollout, retail activations and merchandising hooks

The campaign is described as global, with the article dated May 11, 2025, but offers no regional calendar or retail schedule. For planning merch and store activations, request the rollout calendar and ask whether there will be region-specific creative variations.

Retail activation ideas aligned to the campaign creative that you can pitch or prepare for immediately:

• Hero window and in-store portraits paired with curated assortments: focus displays on the polo, Lenglen Bag, layered polos and accessories.
• Shop-in-shop vignettes that recreate each ambassador tableau (lighting, props like netting or blue bouquets) so customers can shop the look.
• Ambassador-timed product drops or limited merch runs linked to campaign phases (e.g., polo relaunch, special Lenglen Bag colorway).
• Digital merchandising: dedicated e-commerce landing pages grouped by ambassador/visual theme with campaign videos, buy-the-look modules, and localized copy.

Request product drop schedules and SKU lists from merchandising to align e-comm banners and inventory.

Social strategy, hashtags and localization

To ensure consistent social activation and retailer amplification, propose a tight set of recommendations while waiting for Lacoste’s official social brief. Suggested starting points:

• Campaign hashtags to propose internally: #PlayWithIcons, #LacostePlayWithIcons, plus local-language equivalents where appropriate.
• Format guidance: hero video 60 to 120 seconds for YouTube/brand channels; 15 to 60-second cutdowns for Reels/TikTok; 9:16 for vertical Reels, 1:1 or 4:5 for Instagram feed.
• Caption localization: supply short and long copy variants for each market (headline 6-10 words; body 1-2 short sentences), and provide translations vetted by Lacoste or local comms to preserve tone.

Clarify whether Lacoste will provide approved localized captions and hashtag lists, or whether partners must translate and route for approvals.

Media kit checklist and measurement recommendations

Below is a compact media-kit asset guide to request. Having these organized accelerates press distribution and retailer use.

For campaign measurement, prioritize these KPIs: earned media reach and key placements, video views and completion rates, social engagement per asset, web e-commerce conversion tied to campaign pages, and in-store uplift for campaign-related SKUs.

Conclusion

Lacoste’s Play with Icons global campaign 2025 gives clear editorial and retail angles — ambassador-led portraits, heritage pieces reframed for performance dressing, and rich visual motifs to exploit across press and stores. The current reporting supplies strong creative credits (Tyler Mitchell; BETC) and talent list but not the practical materials you need. Your immediate next steps: request the full high-res asset kit, a usage matrix and a regional rollout calendar, and secure localized copy approvals so you can move from planning to publication and retail activation without legal delay.