Over 157 million fans expected to be reached by Ronaldo and Neymar in a new Facebook campaign.

Neymar and Ronaldo

In what could easily be their most expensive marketing campaign ever, PokerStars are harnessing the power of their two football megastars' social media presence.

A new series of video adverts have been released to Cristiano Ronaldo's 104 million Facebook fans and Neymar Jnr's 53 million Facebook fans, two weeks before they are broadcast on television globally.

The two footballing icons have a combined social media following of over 157 million.

The biggest campaign ever

Over 104 million Facebook fans

Michael Hazel, the interim CEO of the Rational Group, revealed this was the biggest marketing campaign ever by PokerStars:

“This is the biggest PokerStars marketing campaign in history and we are excited to launch with exclusive distribution on Facebook. Both videos show how each of the stars love the game of poker in their own unique way. The vast numbers of fans who engage with both stars make Facebook a great platform to reach a big audience. To put this into context the combined fan base for both superstars is a huge 157 million; the estimated global TV audience for the recent Champions League final was 180 million.”

No word yet on how much money has been invested into this campaign, but a recent story has highlighted just how lucrative business with Cristiano Ronaldo is. Last week it was revealed he bought his agent a Greek island as a wedding present, worth around €3 million.

The new advertising campaign is going to coincide with a series of promotions later this month that could award up to $1 million to one lucky player.

Do you think this campaign will attract a lot of new players? Could this be a game-changer for poker? Let us know in the comments.

Barry Carter Barry Carter is the editor of PokerStrategy.com and the co-author of The Mental Game of Poker 1 & 2. Twitter

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