If you're a fan of soccer or traveling, prepare to get jealous. If you're a fan of both, prepare to get really jealous.
Joel Robison has a job from now through the end of April. His assignment? To go on an around-the-world tour with the World Cup Trophy, beginning and ending in Rio de Janeiro, while documenting each stop on Twitter to connect with fans, and help build anticipation for arguably the most anticipated event in global sports. The 2014 World Cup in Brazil begins next June.
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Robison will visit 89 countries, as well as an undecided number of cities and towns during the journey, while posting original photos and other updates from the @TrophyTour Twitter account, he told Mashable in an interview. The goal?
"To celebrate the idea of this being the world's cup," Robison said. "The idea is to tell stories of people from all ages, races and socioeconomic statuses who are celebrating football around the world."
Here's one of the first photos Robison posted:
Meet David, a young Brazilian football player and fan.Yesterday he received a surprise, can you guess what it was? pic.twitter.com/pJwayqRVFQ
— Trophy Tour (@TrophyTour) September 13, 2013
Robison got the gig through Coca-Cola, which is the trophy's official sponsor. Just how he landed it, however, is itself an interesting story that speaks to the power of social media.
A dedicated photography hobbyist, Robison joined Flickr some years back, posting a variety of shots to his own account. A few of those included Coke bottles. One day, a Coca-Cola rep asked if the company could post some of his shots on Twitter, and Robison agreed.
Several months later, the rep called back. Coke wanted him to get involved in its official Flickr page, supplying images of his own, while trying to grow a community of other photographers who would share user-generated content involving the beverage. Robison did that, and later expressed a desire to get more involved with Coke's social presence.
Then, earlier this year, a bombshell call. Robison answered his phone while on lunch break at his job working with special-needs kids at a Canadian high school. How would he like to make a seven-month trip around the world promoting Coke and the World Cup, while taking photos the entire time?
"I was pretty amazed and blown away by the question," Robison said. He answered yes, and details were soon ironed out.
The voyage begins on Saturday night, when Robison and the trophy fly out of Rio to visit Tahiti and Fiji. From there, it's on through North America, Central America, South America, Africa, Europe and Asia. Robison has never been a big soccer fan, but expects that to change by the end of the trip.
"I'm learning to become one," he said. "I have a feeling by the time I get to Rio after visiting all these places and meeting all these people, that I'll have a new appreciation."
Image: Buda Mendes/Getty Images for Coca Cola