Last week, college football fans looking for an exciting showdown between the country’s top two teams – the Georgia Bulldogs and Alabama Crimson Tide – were not disappointed. Going into the second half down by 13 points, Alabama battled back, pushing the game to a 20-20 tie, then ultimately besting the Bulldogs in overtime.
Any sports fan knows that a matchup with a team in a neighboring state is typically a showdown brimming with trash talk and friendly – and not-so-friendly – wagers, and this game was no exception for factory workers at sister companies Hyundai and Kia.
Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama in Montgomery established a friendly wager with the Kia plant in West Point, Georgia: the losing team’s fans would be forced to display a car in their plant adorned with the winning team’s colors. Since Alabama eked out the win, workers at the Montgomery Hyundai plant are now producing an Elantra and a Sonata sedan, each emblazoned with crimson and white and featuring Alabama’s logo.
When the cars are finished, they’ll be driven to Georgia and presented to the workers at the Kia plant — of course, we assume, in a mature and compassionate way that takes into account the gutting disappointment of the Georgia fans, right? Besides, the Hyundai workers already won anyway: the plant was shut down Monday night so employees could watch the matchup, and Tuesday morning’s shift was canceled as well, perhaps to account for the celebrating.