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PepsiCo and Tastemade partner for digital content series, contest


Game Day Grub Match consists of three episodes of competition between three Tastemade chefs, and their dishes were judged by Food Network chef Anne Burrell; former Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Hines Ward and PepsiCo executive chef Stephen Kalil. In keeping with PepsiCo?s aspirations toward ubiquity this time of year, the competition requires that contestants must use at least two PepsiCo products as ingredients.

?The Super Bowl is a huge stage for PepsiCo and our brands,? Mr. Kalil said. ?Every year we look for new ways to bring the excitement of Super Bowl Sunday to life for fans across the country, and Game Day Grub Match brings the worlds of food and football together in a way only PepsiCo can.

"Our food and beverage products have tremendous culinary versatility, and these three Tastemakers created some truly inspiring recipes that are certain to be crowd-pleasing favorites."

Game Day Grub Match
The series will be hosted by celebrity chef Jet Tila, known for his appearances on programs such as Iron Chef America and Chopped, an appropriate choice considering the Game Day Grub Match?s striking similarity to the latter competition?s rules and setup. 

PepsiCo and Tastemade will promote the content across their respective social media properties including advertising on Tastemade's Snapchat Discover channel. The chef with the highest cumulative score from the judges won tickets to Super Bowl LI in Houston, Texas.


The winner will also get an opportunity to take over Tastemade's Snapchat Stories channel during Super Bowl weekend, documenting several experiences including Taste of the NFL's "Party with a Purpose," an annual event supported by PepsiCo and the PepsiCo Foundation to raise money for food banks across the United States.

While the contest?s strictures may seem prohibitive at a glance, PepsiCo?s wide array of properties ? compounded with the fact that the contest was shaped around the products and not the other way around ? ensured that the chefs made quick work of every task; a conspicuous development, and unsurprising to see in a branded content effort. 

PepsiCo and the NFL
PepsiCo's relationship with the NFL is among the company's longest running and most successful sports sponsorships, and the Super Bowl represents the culmination of a season-long activation. Its engagements during the game will include a partnership with Snapchat, Tostitos, Walmart and a digital content series featuring NFL stars (see story). 

The food and beverage conglomerate also inked a targeted partnership with WinView, an application popular with millennials that allows users to make live predictions on NFL games to win money, the first sponsorship agreement for the nascent app (see story). 


?I love, love, loved seeing these creative young chefs put their own unique twist on game day food," said Ms. Burrell. "This competition has something for everyone, and all three contestants scored big with their dishes. 

?They even inspired me to try a few new things the next time I have friends over to watch the big game."