Rugby rash is spreading quickly among the marketing community, with tournament sponsors, team sponsors and filthy ambushers all riding that World Cup train like Tom Cruise in an action movie. We’ve already seen plenty of local activity and here are a few from the host countries.
Samsung, which sponsors rugby around the world and is an official partner of the English rugby union, launched the Samsung School of Rugby this week, a “multi-platform initiative which aims to enhance people’s enjoyment of the game with a humorous campaign”. Created by BBH Sport, it features Lawrence Dallaglio, Martin Johnson and a whole host of other rugby stars putting comedian Jack Whitehall through his paces.
Lucozade has also taken a humorous approach, launching a campaign called Hands Off, that shows only players from the UK are allowed to drink it—and foreign players Drew Mitchell and Bryan Habana perfecting their accents and attempting to get their hands on some.
Guinness has taken a much more serious path and, rather than focus on physical attributes, it’s “celebrating stories of strength of character and integrity from the world of rugby”, with the two spots featuring Wales’ Gareth Thomas, who talks about coming out to his teammates, and South Africa’s Ashwin Willemse, who defied his circumstances.
