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Neeraj Chopra signs first brand endorsement with Tata AIA post Tokyo win
Mumbai: Tata AIA Life Insurance has announced the signing of a multi-year brand partnership with Indian athlete and Olympic gold medallist Neeraj Chopra as its brand ambassador on Wednesday. This association marks the very first brand partnership to be signed with the champion javelin thrower post his historic Olympic win.
Chopra closely embodies Tata AIA’s vision of enabling dreams and inspiring healthier and happier lives and its core value of passion for excellence, said the company in a statement. Over the next few years, he will support Tata AIA’s efforts in offering life protection and health & wellness solutions to its consumers across the country, it added.
The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has also underlined the need for life and health insurance, more emphatically than ever. With a premium-to-GDP penetration of less than 3.5 per cent in India (as per Swiss Re Sigma report on World Insurance, 2021), there is a clear and urgent need to fast-track the insurance journey in the country.
Chopra’s association with Tata AIA stems from his own experience and understanding of the need for adequate life and health cover and timely planning for one’s key life milestones, stated the brand.
Welcoming Chopra on board, Tata AIA Life Insurance, executive vice president and chief distribution officer, Venky Iyer said, “As a VSM awardee in the Army and a National icon today, Neeraj symbolises incredible passion for excellence and a great commitment to serving the nation. For us at Tata AIA, his sports journey echoes greatly with our vision of enabling dreams and inspiring healthier and happier lives. And quite like we observe in Neeraj’s journey, passion for excellence, and an obsession to do the best for our consumers, the people of India, are among the core values at Tata AIA.”
Speaking on the association, Chopra said, “Joining the Tata AIA family was a logical step for me. I firmly believe that there is a need to educate Indians, especially the youth, about the need for life insurance and to help them plan for their financial goals, at the right time. Further, the pandemic has made us realize the key need to pursue physical and emotional wellbeing in our day-to-day life.”
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Lego brings Messi, Ronaldo, Mbappé, Vinicius together
Campaign clocks 314 million views ahead of FIFA World Cup 2026 buzz.
MUMBAI: Four legends, one frame and not a single tackle in sight. Lego has pulled off a crossover few thought possible, uniting Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior in a single campaign ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026 only this time, they’re building dreams brick by brick.
Titled “Everyone wants a piece”, the campaign features the quartet assembling a Lego version of the World Cup trophy, before placing miniature versions of themselves atop it, a playful nod to football’s ultimate prize. Shared widely across social media, the ad carries a pointed disclaimer: it is not AI-generated, a subtle but telling signal in an era where even reality is often questioned.
The numbers tell their own story. The campaign has already crossed 314 million views on Instagram across the players’ accounts, with fans hailing it as a rare, almost nostalgic moment particularly for the reunion of Messi and Ronaldo, whose last shared campaign ahead of the 2022 World Cup became one of the platform’s most-liked posts.
Beyond the film, Lego is extending the play with exclusive, player-themed sets tied to each of the four stars, part of a broader football-led programme designed to ride the global momentum building towards 2026. The idea, as echoed by the players themselves, leans into the parallels between football and play experimentation, creativity, failure, and triumph.
Messi described the sets as a way to bring on-pitch moments into an imaginative, hands-on world, while Ronaldo called the transformation into a Lego figure a rare honour, blending sport with storytelling. Vinícius, meanwhile, struck a more personal note, recalling childhood moments of building with Lego and framing creativity as a universal language that transcends borders.
The timing is no accident. With the 2026 World Cup set to run from June 11 to July 19 across the United States, Canada and Mexico, and featuring an expanded 48-team format, global anticipation is already building. Argentina, led by Messi, will enter as defending champions, adding another layer of intrigue.
For Lego, the campaign does more than celebrate football, it taps into its mythology. Because when icons become figurines and rivalries turn into play, the beautiful game finds a new kind of pitch. one built, quite literally, by hand.
