• October 12, 2024

Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart) has bagged a bronze in the prestigious 2023 CLIO Sports Awards for turning the iconic SM Mall of Asia landmark in Pasay City into a giant basketball.

This creative endeavor served as a massive welcome to the FIBA World Cup 2023, the world’s biggest basketball tournament, held last August.

CLIO Sports honors the best in sports advertising and marketing worldwide every year. This is the first CLIO Sports recognition for Smart, which is also the only Filipino brand in this year’s list of winners, alongside world-leading brands such as adidas, ESPN, NBA, NFL, Nike, Under Armour, and Xbox, among others.

“We dedicate this recognition to all basketball-loving Filipinos, whose passion for the sport inspired the world-class MOA Ball,” said Lloyd Manaloto, FVP and Head of Prepaid and Content at Smart.

“Basketball is deeply embedded in our culture, and it is only fitting that we build a world-class and larger-than-life basketball tribute for one of the biggest international sports events hosted by the Philippines. We share this award with all those who worked tirelessly to turn our vision into reality,” he added.

As FIBA global partner, Smart unveiled the MOA Ball last August 15 to amplify the excitement of fans ahead of the FIBA World Cup 2023 opening.

A team of 248 workers—including site workers, engineers, safety officers, and designers—built the installation. It measured 1.5 meters in diameter inside a ring with a circumference of 111 meters, easily visible from airplanes flying to and from Manila during the FIBA tournament.

Prior to bagging the CLIO Sports award, Smart also scored last September a ‘Best Outdoor Ad’ recognition for the MOA Ball from BestAdsOnTV.com, which monitors the world’s best ads.

Basketball fans can look forward to more world-class activations as Smart and FIBA have renewed their global partnership until after the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 in Qatar. 

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