Pepsi Brings the Hype to Phoenix for Super Bowl XLIX

Live For Now experiences encourage consumers to get Hyped for Halftime

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Jan 28, 2015, 01:24 ET

PURCHASE, N.Y., Jan. 28, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Pepsi, the official sponsor of the Super Bowl XLIX Halftime Show featuring Global superstar Katy Perry and GRAMMY® award-winning artist Lenny Kravitz, today announced activations the brand will execute in and around Phoenix, Arizona to get consumers hyped for Halftime and Super Bowl XLIX during the week leading up to the championship game.

Returning for the 13^thconsecutive year as the official soft drink partner of the NFL, Pepsi will bring the hype and take over the Phoenix market with participation in a number of Super Bowl XLIX activities from January 28 – February 1 including:

The Pepsi Rookie of the Year Award
Pepsi "Hyped for Halftime Stage"
Pepsi Hype Zone at Verizon Super Bowl Central
Madden Bowl XXI Super Bowl Party
PepsiCo Game Day Grub Match
Additional Pepsi "Hyped for Halftime" Experiences at & around University of Phoenix Stadium
PepsiCo Recycling

The Pepsi Rookie of the Year Award
New this year, Pepsi will award the NFL Rookie of the Year at the "PepsiCo Super Bowl party" on Friday, January 30 at the Phoenix Art Museum. The 2014 Pepsi Rookie of the Year will be in attendance at the event to accept his award.

Pepsi "Hyped for Halftime Stage" at Verizon Super Bowl Central
Pepsi is bringing the excitement of halftime with a free, four-day celebration of music to Super Bowl Central in downtown Phoenix to get consumers hyped for the most watched event of the year. Music performances will take place Wednesday, January 28 through Saturday, January 31, on a custom-designed Pepsi "Hyped for Halftime Stage." The stage will feature all-day musical performances, including headlining performers The Roots, Walk the Moon and more during night festivities.

Pepsi "Hype Zone" at Verizon Super Bowl Central
Also located at Verizon Super Bowl Central, consumers will be welcomed into the Pepsi "Hype Zone," a two-level fan experience featuring an immersive "Hype Chamber" photo booth and an LED screen content activation. Upon entering the Zone, fans will be directed to step into the "Hype Chamber" where they will have the option to choose props and capture photos for printing and sharing on Instagram to receive an instant social vending machine surprise and the chance to be featured on the big LED screen. On the second level, fans will find interactive "Kick the Hype" mobile games enabling them to connect with the main LED screen and use their mobile phones as game controllers.

Madden Bowl XXI Super Bowl Party
Pepsi continues its season of bringing the magic of halftime to unexpected times and places with a special halftime performance by Norwegian singing/songwriting duo Nico & Vinz during the EA SPORTS Madden Bowl XXI on Thursday, January 29 from 7pm-2am at both Livewire and Bottled Blonde in Scottsdale.

PepsiCo Game Day Grub Match
PepsiCo's "Game Day Grub Match" is a culinary competition where student chefs from The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) competed to create the ultimate Super Bowl party dish using PepsiCo food and beverage products as ingredients. Amid two finalist recipes, a winner will be announced this weekend at Taste of the NFL, scoring scholarship money and tickets to the big game on Sunday.

Get your taste buds ready, the two final dishes competing for the grand prize are:

Naked Chia Cherry Lime Pork Sliders, topped with Pepsi-candied bacon and served on a homemade Quaker Oats and Fritos biscuit with a side of Muller Tropicana Slaw; and
Tostitos Chipotle Chicken Tacos, served in a grilled flour tortilla with Tostitos Salsa- and Pepsi-marinated chicken, with sides of a Sabra Guacamole-based salsa verde and Sierra Mist red cabbage slaw.

Additional Pepsi "Hyped for Halftime" Experiences At & Around the University of Phoenix Stadium
On Sunday, February 1 at Game Day Fan Plaza located in front of the main entrance gate, Pepsi & Frito Lay will host a sampling event allowing fans to try out their latest offerings. Offerings include complimentary food and beverage tastings. Super Bowl Central will stretch from Fifth Street to First Avenue between Jefferson and Monroe streets and will cover 12 downtown blocks east of the NFL Experience at the Phoenix Convention Center's North Building, creating a destination for all fan, media, sponsor and NFL happenings around Super Bowl XLIX.

Pepsi has truly turned Phoenix blue with premier building wraps and massive OOH installations that have been visible throughout the city. In addition to the innovative digital and out of home advertising, takeovers at transportation hubs including the Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport and Phoenix Metro Light Rail all boast Pepsi advertising.

PepsiCo Recycling
Working with the NFL, City of Phoenix and Keep Phoenix Beautiful, PepsiCo has placed 500 specially designed recycling bins in and around the stadium and surrounding area, including NFL Experience and Super Bowl Central. Additionally, hundreds of volunteers from Phoenix and Keep Phoenix Beautiful, will hit the streets to make this a clean and green Super Bowl. The recycling bins also feature the PepsiCo Recycling promotion. Now through Feb. 3, football fans have the chance to win a trip for two to Super Bowl 50 next year by texting "Recycle" to 73774 and sharing their Super Bowl photos using #PepsiRecycles.

About PepsiCo
PepsiCo products are enjoyed by consumers one billion times a day in more than 200 countries and territories around the world. PepsiCo generated more than $66 billion in net revenue in 2013, driven by a complementary food and beverage portfolio that includes Frito-Lay, Gatorade, Pepsi-Cola, Quaker and Tropicana. PepsiCo's product portfolio includes a wide range of enjoyable foods and beverages, including 22 brands that generate more than $1 billion each in estimated annual retail sales.

At the heart of PepsiCo is Performance with Purpose – our goal to deliver top-tier financial performance while creating sustainable growth in shareholder value. In practice, Performance with Purpose means providing a wide range of foods and beverages from treats to healthy eats; finding innovative ways to minimize our impact on the environment and reduce our operating costs; providing a safe and inclusive workplace for our employees globally; and respecting, supporting and investing in the local communities where we operate. For more information, visit www.pepsico.com.

SOURCE PepsiCo