Puma adds Namibia to list of 2010 African World Cup teams

Puma Africa Plays On compilation CDPuma recently announced a sponsorship deal with the Namibian Football Association (NFA). Namibia’s national team, the Brave Warriors, will be supplied with Puma’s latest v-Series technical apparel and footwear beginning with the African Cup of Nations 2008 qualifier home game against the Democratic Republic of Congo on 16 June 2007 and for the next several years through the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. While I’m not really a sports fan, I’ve been following Puma’s push to “increase its African footprint” by sponsoring the most African football teams by 2010. Having already signed deals with Ivory Coast, Ghana, Cameroon, Egypt, Tunisia, Senegal, Togo, Morocco, Mozambique, Angola and Botswana, Puma is already on it’s way to reaching that goal in the build-up to the 2008 African Cup of Nations in Ghana and 2010 World Cup in South Africa. As I reported previously, Puma began this journey last year by sponsoring the most African teams for the 2006 World Cup. Along with their sponsorship last year, Puma launched a targeted campaign in support of African football which included a huge press event with notable African personalities including Akon, a book “The African Game” by Nigerian photographer Andrew Dosunmu, a music CD, “Africa Plays On”, featuring music from various artists including Akon, John Legend, Amadou & Mariam, Cheikh Lô, and Daara J, and the related Puma Charity Collection. If last year’s campaign was an example, it looks like Puma be living up to its goal of pulling out all the big guns for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Now that’s what I call strategy.

“This association underlines PUMA’s commitment to African Football and specifically to the growth and development of Football in Namibia. We look forward to a long and mutually beneficial relationship with the NFA.” – Jochen Zeitz of PUMA AG

This week in African style, 1/6 – 1/12/07

• Will Smith plans to move to South Africa:

• Wesley Snipes wants more Africans making films

• Chris Rock vows to help Kenyans

• Yale puts African art on a pedastel

• DiCaprio adopts a South African girl. Thats one way to open the door to immigrants

• George Clooney advocates for Darfur with film

• Adoption groups criticize Angelina Jolie who criticized Madonna who thinks EVERYONE should adopt an African baby.

• Vh1 gets Bling’d for the United Nation on February 22

Namibian Venantia Otto wins Face of Africa 2006

Vanentia- Winner, Face of Africa 2006Venantia Otto was announced as the winner of the the 2006 Nokia Face of Africa competition. The Namibian-born Venantia beat out the other 10 finalists from all over Africa and was announced as the winner of the US$150,000 prize modeling contract courtesy Elite Model Management – which has represented models such as Cindy Crawford, Tyra Banks, Iman, and Naomi Campbell. Venantia hopes to take New York by storm when she begins her tenure with one of the world’s biggest and boldest agencies. The Nokia Face of Africa 2006 Final was broadcast to over 40 African countries.

Nokia picks the Face of Africa for 2006

Oluchi OnweagbaOn April 22 the Nokia Face of Africa 2006 contest will have its final casting in Johannesburg, South Africa. Having covered 12 cities since February, the contest is in its eighth year of selecting a unique model who will reign as the Face of Africa. In countries such as Ghana, Rwanda, Namibia and Nigeria, a scouting team has already chosen a semi-finalist. The winner of the continent-wide search will be chosen on August 13 in Sun City in Johannesburg.

Though the contest has been long running, with Nokia backing the efforts, the winner of the contest will gain more exposure than the winners of the past. Only one model so far has turned her win into an international modeling career, though others continue to work as models. Since winning the contest in 1998 at the age of seventeen, Nigerian model Oluchi Onweagba was awarded a three-year contract by Elite Models Management. Oluchi (as she’s known in the modeling world) has since graced the covers of Italian Vogue, I-D, Elle, Untold, and Surface and has been featured in Nylon, Marie Claire, Allure, and Vogue while working with the who’s-who of the fashion world.

The Nokia Face of Africa 2006 contest is being filmed by South Africa’s M-Net channel for its African lifestyle program Studio 53 and will dedicate three programs in July to the search for Nokia Face of Africa 2006.