BlueCross BlueShield: The Check Ball

BlueCross BlueShield Costa Rica created a soccer ball to get men talking about their balls.To launch its new cancer insurance, the insurer created a focused campaign for men around soccer.Testicular cancer is the most common cancer among young men and even so, 55% of them don’t want to talk about it… until now. Because BlueCross BlueShield made the biggest sport in Costa Rica talk about cancer.In Costa Rica, every man played football as a kid, that's why everyone knows that if a lump appears on the ball, the game is over.

Along with doctors, artists and Erick Marín, a professional footballer and testicular cancer survivor, BlueCross BlueShield created The Check Ball. A unique ball with a lump and the steps for the self-examination.

Such was the impact of the campaign that The Check Ball became the official ball of the 2019 national football tournament semifinals.

The most hopeful result of this campaign is that Costa Ricans decided to learn more about this disease. The peak of searches for "testicular cancer" on Google during the year occurred while the campaign was on the air.