The surprise news at 10am on Tuesday (today) that Jose Mourinho had been sacked by Manchester United did not catch out the Evening Standard or their football partners Paddy Power-Betfair.

Reacting with speed and humour, the Standard’s comprehensive editorial coverage of the sacking which was carried on the front and back pages was complemented by a cheeky tactical advert from Paddy Power heralding the self-styled Special One Mourinho as ‘Special Gone’ and installing Zinedine Zidane as the favourite to be the next United boss.

It is another example of the nimbleness of the editorial team at the Standard who work closely with the commercial floor at Evening Standardto help produce reactive campaigns that cut-through for clients.

Earlier this year, the Standard ran an award-winning campaign with Kronenbourg across print and digital with each advert reflecting the news of the day in a contextual environment with all the adverts produced on the day of publication.

Paddy Power-Betfair have sponsored the Evening Standard’s football coverage for the past three seasons in a deal brokered by Mediacom.

The campaign was covered in The Drum, In Publishing and Newsworks.

“We are constantly striving to find ways to both inform and entertain our audience in as many new ways as possible. Being able to react to stories, in particular sport which is so fast-paced, is a real USP when we are talking to brands about partnerships. If you want the news of the day first in London, then it is going to be in the Evening Standard.”

Steve Cording, Head of Sponsorship at ESI Media