Nearly 13,000 Indian fans’ images will feature in a digitally produced photo mosaic called the ‘Happiness Flag’, slated to be unveiled on the pitch before the kick-off of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Sao Paulo on Thursday night.

Despite cricket being the big sport in the country, Coca-Cola, which crowd-sourced images from 207 countries for the Happiness Flag, said that it received the second highest number of contributions from India. This was almost double the number of entries sent by nations such as Germany, Argentina and Italy, where football is the craze.

With only 32 countries represented by their national football team at the FIFA World Cup, the company’s five-month-long exercise was aimed at making the FIFA World Cup inclusive, engaging with consumers across the globe. Designed by Brazilian street artist Speto and Argentinian artist Tec, The Happiness Flag will be available on Coca-Cola’s digital platform, allowing fans to pinpoint their photo on the flag.

The company, which is one of the official sponsors, has also rolled out over 10 million limited-edition Brazil cans in India besides a host of other initiatives. Coca-Cola, in partnership with FIFA and the All India Football Association got the FIFA World Cup Trophy to Kolkata in December, as part of its global tour.

Debabrata Mukherjee, Vice-President, Marketing and Commercial, Coca-Cola India, said viewership of football has increased significantly in India and established a connect with the youth and schoolchildren, both in urban and non-urban regions.

“Through our Happiness Flag activation, even if fans are not in Brazil, the images that they have shared with Coca-Cola will create a special moment for them,” he added.

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