Why is ride-hailing app, Heetch, repairing basketball hoops in France? Because its M.O. is being helpful and it’s always on the ground to do that. Across many neighbourhoods in Île-de-France, basketball courts are there – visible and available. But silent. Often, all they’re missing to come alive again is one small thing – a net. Studies have shown clearly that a court with a net attracts twice as many players. Without it, the sound of a shot doesn’t hit the same, the joy of the game fades, players move on, and the city loses a bit of its energy.
BETC’s idea, Playground Reborn, is a simple yet symbolic initiative – 300 nets reinstalled on public courts, to bring back the game, the passion… and life.
“We drive through these neighbourhoods every day. Acting on these courts means being useful where it matters, where we are. It’s tangible — just like our service,” explained Renaud Berthe, CMO at Heetch.
The campaign’s manifesto film reminds France that the courts are places of connection, hustle, and pride. When they go quiet, an entire part of the city fades away.
“We didn’t want to portray basketball as something flashy or spectacular, but as urban music. A melody of the everyday. And in that composition, the net is essential,” added Mathieu Laugier and Olivier Aumard, managing director and Creative Director at BETC Paris.
“We’re directly connected to the city and its realities. So when a court goes silent, we hear it. Acting was an obvious choice for us,” Berthe noted.
The new campaign follows Proud sponsor de la banlieue, the platform launched by Heetch in 2023 to highlight what makes urban life so vibrant, both underlining Heetch’s local commitment.
Each net was installed by hand, in collaboration with local players and regulars of the playgrounds, and with the help of well-known streetball figures such as Lucie AGRAS (@Lucieags), Salimata SYLLA (@Sali_7), Rosenel CETOUT (@Newlittlegiant), Yoane LUYENGO, and Khalil Coline (@lil_keef971), along with Malik Rouamba, Samuel Bringer, Themis Maleme, and Ismael Kobe from the U21 and U15 teams of Paris Basketball.
The campaign film, shot across several neighbourhoods in Île-de-France, captures this rebirth through the sounds of the ball bouncing, sneakers sliding on asphalt, and voices rising again.
Credits
Client: Heetch
Client Team: Renaud Berthe, Hector Gruyer, Benjamin Sousa
Creative Agency Agency: BETC
President & Chief Creative Officer: Stéphane Xiberras
Executive Creative Director: Olivier Aumard
Art Directors: Natan Ritaly, Rayhaan Khodabux
Copywriter: Ellynore Attia
Strategic Planning: Etienne Averseng, Julie Quicray
Creative Resources Coordinator: Nathalie Sanseigne
TV Producer: Sebastien Lintingre
Account Team: Mathieu Laugier, Aude Devaux, Lara Lefort
Production House: Soldats
Director: Victor Sellier
Executive Producer: Pierre Cazenave-Kaufman
Production Coordinator: Camille Bigot
Line Producer: Laurianne Metais
Director of Photography: Hugo Ghnassia
Post-Production: 1to1 Paris
Post-Producers: Grégoire Giral, Ulyssia Marchais
Editors: Victor Sellier, Remi Muzzupapa
Colourist: Sarah Soilihi
Sound Design: Muse Audio Pro
