Tiger beer marketer on "a good football night out"

Erik van Vulpen, the 40-year-old, 1.90m-tall, top marketing executive at the Asia Pacific Breweries (Singapore) is reportedly renowned internationally as a strategy, marketing and communications expert. He oversees all marketing and brand management responsibilities for Tiger, the flagship brand of APBS; as well as Heineken, Guinness, Baron's, Anchor, ABC Stout, Erdinger, Corona and Kilkenny.

He was appointed to this position in December last year and now he's embarking on a strategy that will cement the link between APBS and football. APBS has been supporting local soccer in Singapore via its Football Association of Singapore sponsorship for many years and the company feels "we should not only promote the big league football clubs - as we do for Arsenal and the EPL broadcasts. We should also help to build communities," he explained.

This includes continued support for Singapore's national team as well as the highly successful Tiger FC, a club by fanatics for like-minded fanatics. To date, the Tiger FC community has 28 clubhouses, giving many soccer fanatics a place to enjoy a soccer game and ice-cold Tiger beer with friends. "'Believe it or not, Tiger FC is the fastest growing community of football fans in the region,'" Van Vulpen told New Paper (Singapore). "It's easy to explain," he said. "Football, mates and beer make a great night out."

What is his deal recipe for a good football night? "A couple of friends, your wife (if you're married), and a few single ladies and of course an ice-cold Tiger in hand," he said. "'The wife will provide original angles to the match - eg, why are they stopping? The single ladies somehow always inspires the other friends to crack funnier jokes than they normally do."