
Pre-conference masterclass discusses taking African brands to the world
Participants challenged to identify, articulate and commercialise the cultural assets that make their brand ready for a global audience.
BRAND AMBASSADORS
By our African Marketing Confederation News Team | 2024
Liverpool striker will represent the digital payments brand in markets such as Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa.
Visa, the global digital payments company, has announced a new partnership with Egyptian football legend Mohamed Salah. He is to a Visa ambassador for the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Kuwait, Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa.
Salah with Visa marketing executive Tarek Abdalla. Photo: Visa
Visa says that as one of the most electrifying football players in the world, Salah’s performances for Liverpool Football Club and the Egyptian national team have cemented his status as a global icon of the sport.
“Yet, it’s his relentless pursuit of his dreams that truly resonates with fans worldwide,” the company notes in a media statement.
“From a village in the north of Egypt to global superstardom, Salah’s story of grit and fortitude demonstrates the belief that greatness begins with a series of small steps. His tireless passion throughout his career has inspired millions, showcasing the transformative potential of persistence,” it adds.
A legend of the modern game
Tarek Abdalla, Visa’s Chief Marketing Officer for Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, says: “As an icon in the Middle East and Africa, and a legend of the modern game, Salah has become a beacon of hope and joy in households all around the world, uplifting people through the belief that everyone, everywhere can help shape the future.
“We are proud to have Salah as an ambassador, who is not only an inspiring athlete but reflects several of our guiding principles. Breaking barriers, superseding expectations and aiming for best-in-class performance worldwide are all values that Visa deeply embodies, as it seeks to innovate and drive the future of commerce.”
Salah, adds “Throughout my career, every step I have taken has propelled me to greater and greater opportunities, bringing me closer than ever to my dreams.
“I’m excited about the collaboration with Visa and its mission to expand what is possible for more and more people, empowering them to take a series of small steps forward to get to where they want to be.”
Visa has a history of using sporting stars as brand ambassadors. For the upcoming Paris Olympics, for example, the company has named more than 100 able-bodied and disabled athletes.

Participants challenged to identify, articulate and commercialise the cultural assets that make their brand ready for a global audience.

Second outlet planned for Nairobi before year end, with Nigeria, South Africa and Morocco said to be future target markets.

Online search behaviour has changed significantly with the rise of AI. How can African brands adapt to this new marketing landscape?

Researchers propose a framework for packaging that senses, learns and acts – making packaging an active, AI-powered tool against food waste.

Country needs marketers to build recognition and consumer trust around Malawian products and national brand, says Deputy Minister.

Fashion brand suspends giant lingerie high above the city’s streets, using shadows to create a moving billboard for pedestrians and motorists.

Researchers describe AI influencers as having a ‘dual identity’. Consumers evaluate both ‘person’ and ‘technology’ identities at once.

Reputation and trust, once modest influences on hotel choice, have become some of the strongest predictors of patronage, study finds.

South African brands are increasingly setting the global benchmark for customer loyalty strategies, organisers say.

Global influences among younger consumers are still present, but they are being filtered through a distinctly Zambian lens.

Researchers find that lack of perceived ‘genuine care’ is the mechanism connecting AI involvement to lower trust ratings.