Case Study | The Awakener's Team

Teach for Change x Publicis feat. TDB Play

THE AWAKENER'S TEAM

Turning a national education cause into a playable charity tournament

THE BRIEF

Publicis came to TDB Play with a powerful campaign idea for Teach For Bulgaria: transform Bulgarian national Awakeners from dusty classroom portraits into a football team people could support, watch, and join.

The goal was to make education feel less abstract and more immediate for young audiences — not through another awareness message, but through a format built around participation.

In this story, Publicis had the ring. We were Sam helping Frodo get it to Mordor.

TDB Play’s role was to translate the creative platform into a real, playable, and stream-ready experience: a localized EA Sports FC modification, a structured charity tournament, and a live broadcast format built to carry both entertainment and the campaign’s donation mechanic.

INSIGHT

Young audiences are more likely to engage when they are given a role, not just a message.

For the campaign to work inside gaming, the Awakeners could not feel like a decorative campaign layer. They had to become part of the game world — visible, competitive, and entertaining enough to carry a live tournament.

That meant turning historical figures into something audiences could instantly understand in gaming terms: a team.

Strategy

From Big Idea to Playable Reality

Our role was to turn the campaign platform into a format gaming audiences would understand immediately.

The Awakeners had to become more than campaign visuals. They needed to exist as an actual team inside the game, within a tournament structure people could follow, watch, and support live.

We focused on making the campaign:

Playable - through a custom EA Sports FC team.
Watchable - through a clear tournament and livestream structure.
Participatory - through simple donation and support mechanics.

Execution

BRINGING THE TEAM TO LIFE

We helped bring The Awakeners’ Team to life through one of the first fully localized EA Sports FC modifications in Bulgaria.

The in-game experience featured a full team of historical Bulgarian Awakeners, including figures such as Vasil Levski, Hristo Botev, Ivan Vazov, Georgi Rakovski, Georgi Benkovski, Rayna Knyaginya, Todor Kableshkov, and Ekaterina Karavelova.

The technical implementation included:

-Custom 3D modelling and in-game integration of faces and characters
-A full Awakeners’ Team identity inside EA Sports FC
-Custom kits and jerseys
-Logo and team assets
-Flags, stadium branding, and pitch assets
-In-game partner advertising placements
-Coach and referee integration
-Technical setup for the live tournament format

The campaign culminated in a 5-hour charity gaming tournament, streamed on Twitch and simulcast across YouTube, Facebook, Kick, and TikTok. The tournament ran as a Round of 16 competition, with celebrities and advocates playing alongside the AI-recreated historic Awakeners inside the localized football-game experience.

The broadcast was structured like a major sports event, with a live studio, host, commentators, match analysis, and cultural storytelling between games. This allowed the stream to carry both entertainment and meaning — making the Awakeners feel alive on the pitch while keeping the donation message present throughout the experience.

Donation prompts were integrated into the broadcast flow, giving viewers clear ways to join the team: donate, buy the jersey, or support live while watching.

Services

Our role focused on the specialist gaming layer of the campaign — turning Publicis’ creative platform into a working, playable, and stream-ready experience.

Game Modding & Technical Implementation

Localized EA Sports FC Modification / Custom Awakener Team Integration / Character, Kit, Jersey, Flag, Stadium and Pitch Assets / In-Game Branding and Sponsor Placements

Tournament & Livestream

Tournament Structure / Match Flow & Sequencing / Studio, Host & Commentary Technical Support | Broadcast Preparation

Gaming Talent & Community

Gaming Talent Sourcing & Management / Community Management

Participation Mechanics

Donation Mechanic Implementation / Viewer Participation Mechanics

Talent

The campaign brought together a wide group of advocates, combining gaming creators with public figures from sport, entertainment, business, and culture.

TDB Play led the gaming talent side of the campaign, helping bring in creators who could make the tournament feel credible within the streaming and gaming space. Everyone we reached out to was eager to participate, showing how strongly the idea resonated within the gaming community.

This mix helped the project work on two levels: gaming creators gave the tournament authenticity, while the wider advocate group helped the idea travel beyond gaming.

Channels

Game experience

The EA Sports FC mod was the centrepiece — the place where the Awakeners became an actual team.

Social Platforms

The tournament was streamed across Twitch, YouTube, Facebook, Kick, and TikTok, making the live event easy to follow across platforms.

Creators & Advocates

Gaming creators anchored the format in the streaming space, while public figures helped the campaign reach beyond gaming.

Earned Media & PR

The campaign’s visual hook gave Publicis a strong media story: national Awakeners returning as a playable football team.

Results | Build Smarter Challenge

Results

WE helped Publicis turn education into a matchday moment Bulgaria watched, shared, and supported.

The campaign became the biggest media moment in Teach For Bulgaria’s 15-year history, reaching national TV, radio, online media, and creator channels.

It also delivered record attention for the foundation, with 1.5M YouTube views in 3 weeks — matching the channel’s previous 5 years combined.

Reach 4,000,000

Earned media value €750,000

1,500,000 YouTube views in 3 weeks

37,000+ Total streaming tournament views

20+ Influencers and advocates

30+ Publications across national media