Sport has long been seen as a way to overcome cultural and political differences. The 1971 "Ping Pong Delegation" is a classic example; the first time China had opened its doors to international sports players. The arrival of the US table-tennis team paved the way for Nixon's historic visit to Beijing a year later.
Now Pepsi is using football to bring together diverse communities. A new website, pepsi.youniverse.com/pepsi/pepsi_splash , has been created by Imagini, enabling users to complete a series of questions by choosing from a variety of images. The use of images for data capture helps reveal far more about a personality in comparison to standard profiling. Each image has a different emotional connection to the game, and the user's so-called "VisualDNA" is matched with one of six footballers: David Beckham, Thierry Henry, Ronaldinho, Cesc Fabregas, Lionel Messi and Frank Lampard. The VisualDNA is then matched with other users, creating a network of like-minded fans.
Users can also download Pepsi wallpapers and access behind-the-scenes footage involving the six footballers.
Although I officially hung up my boots over 30 years ago, my 71 per cent match to Henry has made me question whether I am in the right vocation. I did have a quick turn of pace after all.
Tim Bonnet, chief executive of Tequila\London