Heinz Flexes Its Artistic Muscles With Sports Demonstrated By Tomato Athletes
Images via Danny Li / Heaven&Hell Shanghai / Xiaohongshu
While athletes take the stage, Heinz’s tomatoes steal to the podium. To celebrate the country’s 15th National Games, creative agency Heaven & Hell Shanghai has turned tomato stems into pint-sized sprinters, divers, and wrestlers, all without a drop of sauce.
The freshly squeezed campaign from China, which rolled out across Guangzhou transport hubs and digital channels like Xiaohongshu (Rednote), was timed with the Games’ opening on November 9, 2025. The National Games, held across the Greater Bay Area in Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao, provided the perfect canvas for a brand known for its rich red palette. Heinz wasn’t an official sponsor, but that didn’t stop it from joining the cultural conversation with clever timing and a concept rooted in its core ingredient: the tomato.
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Heinz unveils unique ads for the XV National Games in China: sports as riddles on sauce cans. Can you guess them all? Top guessers earn the title of real marketers! 🅠#Heinz #NationalGames #China #CreativeMarketing #Sports pic.twitter.com/DX5QwO2CZB
— PrFlare - Guest posting service (@prflare) November 12, 2025
At first glance, the visuals are simple: the top of the humble fruit, its leafy green crown curled and bent into motion. But look closer, and each “athlete” comes alive. Archers pull invisible strings, divers tuck midair, and runners lunge forward. The tagline, “Every Tomato That Strives to Win is in Heinz,” ties it all together, equating athletic dedication with the brand’s own pursuit of quality.
AMAZING MARKETING 🚨
— Outlander Magazine (@StreetFashion01) November 11, 2025
Heinz just made some GENIUS ads for the National Game’s China is hosting this year 🤯 pic.twitter.com/ZkYRCcnxT0
Sometimes, it seems, all you need to play in the big leagues is to be a spectator with a slice of creativity.
Image via Danny Li / Heaven&Hell Shanghai / Xiaohongshu
Image via Danny Li / Heaven&Hell Shanghai / Xiaohongshu
[via Campaign Brief Asia and TheStable, images via Danny Li / Heaven&Hell Shanghai / Xiaohongshu]
