Fans stunned by France's 'brilliant football commercial' with a big twist

A French Women's World Cup advert fronted by male stars like Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann may sound like an odd tactic to promote the team. But there's a twist.

The new advertisement aims to challenge perceptions about the quality of women's sport.

The ad produced by telecom giant Orange, which sponsors the French women's team, begins by showing displays of skill by the biggest names on the men's team.

A message reads: "Only Les Bleus can give us these emotions. But that's not them you've just seen."

The footage then rewinds and reveals the VFX editing trickery: the players featured in the ad are actually from the women's team0.

The editing was actually showing France's women's players including Sakina Karchaoui and Selma Bacha scoring epic goals.

The advert has been widely praised online, with AFP Sports Correspondent Simon Evans calling it a "rare example of a brilliant football commercial."

The advert came out as the World Cup is due to kick off on July 20, hosted by Australia and New Zealand.

England are one of the favourites to win the tournament after their victory in the 2022 UEFA Women's Euros.

New Zealand will open the tournament with a match against Norway.How to watch the Women's World Cup 2023

The 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup will be broadcast live on BBC and ITV in the UK, with each service broadcasting alternating fixtures.

Matches can also be watched on the ITVX and iPlayer streaming services.

Group Stage

England vs Haiti - 10:30am, ITV

England vs Denmark - 9:30am, BBC

China vs England - 12pm ITV

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