Fans’ ire forces NRL to revamp controversial TV ad campaign
The NRL has listened to fans’ feedback and has quickly moved to redraw its much criticised ad campaign, changing “elements” of the commercial that have been perceived as negative.
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The NRL has revamped its much publicised advertising campaign after it drew widespread criticism following its launch on Monday night.
The Daily Telegraph has learnt the NRL have backtracked from elements of the advertisement which they say were wrongly interpreted as political statements.
There was much excitement celebrating the return of the Simply the Best moniker 30 years since it was originally launched by Tina Turner in what is considered Australia’s greatest sporting campaign.
But the revamp was widely panned with 74 per cent of more than 4500 fans in a Daily Telegraph poll saying it had missed the mark.
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NRL’s chief commercial officer Andrew Abdo said the changes would reflect feedback from the fans but argued that the original ad was “just as polarising”.
“We weren’t given a directive to change it,” Abdo said. “We are reacting to the way some people interpreted elements.
“This is about getting people excited for the season. This is not a political campaign. Our intention is not to create a political debate.
“We want to live up to our mantra that everyone is welcomed and everyone is welcomed to their opinion. If people didn’t think it was an accurate portrayal of course we will change it.
“It’s not because we’ve been told it. We are listening to our fans.
“We are changing elements that people feel portrayed a negative.”
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The voiceover around the Super League moment has changed to show a reunited code while other elements will be “sharper”. The new advertisement could be relaunched as early as Wednesday.
“I was surprised that certain elements of the campaign were interpreted the way some people have,” Abdo said. “You have to respect that. We want to make sure we’re focusing on the positives and the original intent of the campaign which is to reflect on a remarkable 30 years in a remarkable sport.”
The video takes a look at some of the biggest headlines in the game’s past three decades including the Rabbitohs’ return, Newcastle’s 1997 win, Scott Sattler’s tackle in the 2003 grand final and Benji Marshall’s flick pass in the 2005 premiership decider.
High profile players including the Trbojevic brothers, Tyson Frizell, Cody Walker and Latrell Mitchell feature.
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The NRL worked with creative agency The Monkeys for the advertisement which took more than a year to produce. The longer-form advertisement is part of a wider advertising strategy which will include 30-second advertisements which Adbo said will be purely on-field focused.
There will also be a documentary about the makings of the advertisement and outdoor advertisements.
“There are so many elements to this campaign,” Abdo said. “We are getting judged on just one. The whole point of the ad was that it is 2020. It’s been 30 years and we will never replicate (the Turner ad). It was so special. Let’s celebrate history and guess what, in over a week it happens again.
“The original campaign in 1990 was just as polarising. It got quite a lot of negative publicity and people speaking out about an American woman being the voice of rugby league.
“That campaign was not universally loved in the game at the beginning.”