"Saman." The Icelandic word for "together" fittingly serves as the tagline for an Icelandic National Soccer Team Coca-Cola 2018 World Cup advertising campaign that reunited Academy of Art University men's soccer alumni Thorvaldur "Thobbi" Sveinsson and Jon "Jay" Eldon. Working with Iceland-based ad agency Maurar and Avista, Sveinsson's design company, the ART U School of Web Design & New Media graduates exemplified the country's collaborative nature in producing a promotional website paired with a commercial that went viral.

"Since neither of us was called up for Iceland's final squad on the pitch at the World Cup, we had to find another way to participate so we helped create this campaign for Coca-Cola," said Sveinsson. "It was a great experience playing alongside Jay at Academy of Art and, after graduation, I thought we wouldn't be making more assists to one another, but I was proved wrong. We are constantly bringing one other to the table working on different projects for various companies. I'm thankful that our stay in San Francisco and playing for Urban Knights has turned into a lifelong friendship."

"At Academy of Art, I really sharpened my design skills," said Eldon. "From sketching to presenting your idea both in words and visually, there is a lot to be learned there. The important thing for me is that I took away was how to receive and give feedback. Design is not about what's right or wrong, but what works and doesn't work. There can be a lot of ways for a solution which makes being a designer so fun."

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