FIFA World Cup 2022™ Opening
6 minute read
To celebrate the FIFA World Cup 2022™ kick-off, Hyundai presents a variety of opportunities to people from all around the world to join forces for the Goal of the Century – a united world for sustainability. Just as the power of football brings people from all different backgrounds and from every corner of the earth together to reach the goal of victory, now is the time to come together for the ultimate united goal: sustainability for future generations.
Join us on a journey through the following Hyundai events that help us unite for a sustainable future through film, colossal art, and the FIFA Museum in Doha, Qatar.
One Team, One Goal
Victory can only be achieved when the spirit of each and every single player on the football field unites with passionate, cheering fans to score the greatest goal. The players’ heartfelt teamwork to score a goal is what makes the FIFA World Cup 2022™ exciting. This same spirit can be seen in Hyundai’s commitment to achieving the united world’s goal of sustainability for future generations, even in their production lines.
Our film starts with Steven Gerrard, captain of Hyundai’s Team Century, declaring, “The game is not over yet.” You might think he is referring to losing a football game, but he actually means our goal of sustainability. Gerrard declares that we already have the potential to create a more sustainable world. If we channel this energy together, we can take on this crisis facing humanity and change the game.
Hyundai is leading the new mobility era toward sustainability with the goal to achieve carbon neutrality by 2045. IONIQ 5, which launched a new era of electric vehicles, not only utilizes eco-friendly energy but also high-quality, sustainable materials that also take the vehicle’s lifelong environmental impact into consideration. As shown in the film, IONIQ 5 utilizes eco-friendly fabric woven from recyclable PET bottles on the backside of the front seats and in the door trim.
Furthermore, in this year’s newly launched IONIQ 6, carpets are made with fibers from recycled fishing nets, and paints extracted from used tires were used to color some parts of its interior and exterior.
Hyundai cannot achieve their dream of the Goal of the Century on their own. Luckily, they are not alone for their goal. Italian contemporary artist, Lorenzo Quinn, a member of Team Century, has also expressed the importance of solidarity by creating “The Greatest Goal”, a huge goalpost that can only be created by two hands holding each other. When people all over the world finally unite to make a concerted effort for the Goal of the Century, we will finally win this game and achieve sustainability for every human and living being on Earth. Read on to find out more about the awe-inspiring “The Greatest Goal” sculpture.
The Greatest Goal
We are thrilled to showcase a sculpture created by Team Century member Lorenzo Quinn at the FIFA Fan Festival™ from 19 November 2022.
Lorenzo Quinn’s sculpture, called “The Greatest Goal”, is a literal representation of Hyundai, TC members, football players, and fans all linking arms in a show of solidarity. But it also reflects the power of this historical event in bringing people together from around the world.
Created with recycled steel mesh and featuring over 70,000 welding points, at the sculpture’s core sits a recycled steel globe, dressed in living layers of foliage, symbolizing our campaign pledge.
Sitting right on the goal line, the globe’s placement represents our commitment to a sustainable future. We may not yet be where we need to be, but by pledging to change we are one step closer to scoring the world’s greatest goal and we are making a difference by bringing everyone together.
It was important to us at Hyundai, and to sculptor Lorenzo Quinn, to ensure that the hosting country also played a part in creating the sculpture. Woven by hand and using traditional crafting techniques, local Qatari fishermen completed the goal by creating a net made of recycled linen. This is a truly inspiring process that unites old and new sculptural techniques.
The sculpture measures 7.7m x 18.25m and will be the “largest sculpture to be made of recycled steel”.
And there’s yet more to look forward to. Hyundai will host another hashtag event of SPOT dancing to BTS’s song “Yet to come” which gives participants the chance to win tickets to the World Cup. Visit our sculpture at the FIFA Fan Festival™ to find out more.
We also mentioned the FIFA museum. The world-famous FIFA museum in Switzerland has commissioned the construction of a sustainable FIFA museum in Doha, Qatar. Hyundai hosts a major exhibition in the museum during the World Cup. Read on to find out more about the sustainable construction method and the powerful statement FIFA and Hyundai are making for our future generations.
“Goals Create History” at the FIFA Museum, Presented by Hyundai
In celebration of the FIFA World Cup 2022™, Hyundai Motor will host a major exhibition at the FIFA Museum at Al Bidda Park, located in the center of Doha. The exhibition titled “Goals Create History” recalls the greatest moments and goals seen throughout World Cup history while providing a space for football fans from around the world to unite for sustainability and recognize the importance of achieving this greater goal for humanity.
Presented by Hyundai Motor Company, the FIFA Museum was built using the “rammed earth construction” method. This method allows the exterior of the museum to “return to nature” without generating waste after the deconstruction, while eco-friendly materials were used to finish the interior. This decision was intentional. We wanted to highlight the Goal of the Century initiative’s sustainability goal. The exterior also embodies the combination of several goalposts of the soccer field into one: designed to convey solidarity and unity toward the Goal of the Century.
Inside the exhibition hall, jerseys from the 32 qualified national teams, the World Cup trophy, original objects from all FIFA World Cup tournaments since 1930, and exhibition areas about Team Century's activities for sustainability will be on display. Throughout the exhibition, Hyundai Motor Company will share a more tangible and relatable vision and mission of the Goal of the Century initiative to the visitors.
The original FIFA Museum, located in Zurich, Switzerland, is one of the world's largest football museums and a leading attraction for football fans. Filled with unique original objects to celebrate football heritage and culture, the museum allows visitors to look back to the past and ahead to the future – to the best of the FIFA World Cup 2022™.
Previously, Hyundai Motor Company attracted the attention of many football fans around the world by hosting special exhibitions at the FIFA Museums in Moscow and Paris, where the 2018 FIFA World Cup™ and the 2019 Women's World Cup™ were held respectively.
Now that you have made it through Hyundai’s World Cup Opening journey, we hope you join us in our Goal of the Century and maybe, just maybe, even get the chance to visit the World Cup and the FIFA museum in Doha with a friend (see the Spot dance challenge above).