Pepsi is under fire after releasing a new advertisement for the upcoming World Cup in Qatar, where it depicts the Moroccan city of Marrakech as if it were in the hosting Gulf country.
The video was posted on Twitter by Pepsi and shared by the players who star in it. The clip caused an uproar among Moroccans, who accused the brand of appropriating Moroccan culture.
The video, called Nutmeg Royale, features three of the world’s most iconic players: Lionel Messi, Ronaldinho, and Paul Pogba.
On Twitter, behind-the-scenes clips are making the rounds, proving that the video was indeed shot in Marrakech.
The players were not physically in Marrakech for the shooting, body doubles were used instead. But in the final results, we see them playing with teenagers and Youssef Ben Hayoun Sadafi, a Moroccan actor who ‘loses’ against Messi in the video.
Moroccans did not hesitate to express their distaste for the video, explaining that this is yet another case of cultural appropriation, occurring shortly after the Zellij ordeal with Adidas.
The commercial was overall well received internationally, but Pepsi has yet to address any of the accusations.
Moroccan internet users are calling for the intervention of the Ministry of Culture to prevent cultural appropriation from occurring again.
Supposed to be in Qatar but it’s shot in Morocco and all the extras are Moroccans.
Yes including the handsome dude. https://t.co/baDdw3QvV3— Saad Maan. سعد معن. Banana enthusiast ?? (@SaadMaan15) October 14, 2022
Arabs are not a monolith. We can talk about an “Arab region” when all Arab countries look the same and can be mistaken for one another. That is not the case here. Qatar and Morocco have NOTHING in common. Everything about this ad screams Moroccan heritage and culture. +
— Willa Marsden (@MarsdenWilla) October 14, 2022
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