NRL Swysh: Marriage proposals and adoptions – the stars leading boom in personalised video messages

Need an idea for a late Christmas present for a loved one? Why not spoil them with a message from their favourite NRL star? Here’s what it will cost you and how to order.

Marriage proposals, gender reveals and even adoption requests, welcome to the burgeoning world of celebrity video messaging services, where you can get a personalised missive from a Dally M medallist, cult hero or a rising star.

From as little of $20 and as much as $500, fans can connect with their favourite sportspeople on video service Swysh.

Less than three years since its inception, the platform has delivered almost 100,000 video messages to fans from more than 1000 athletes across 24 sports.

And for the 300 NRL players, past and present, on Swysh, business is booming.

Fans can request personal messages from them, which can be sent to family or friends as a gift. Players vary in what they charge, with Latrell Mitchell the dearest of the present player crop at $500.

Alex Johnston and Cameron Murray recording a Swysh video. Source: Swysh

Superstars like Mitchell, Ryan Papenhuyzen and James Tedesco (both $300 each), Cameron Murray ($180), Kezie Apps and Emma Tonegato (both $75 each) have helped deliver more than 10,000 personalised, heartfelt videos each year.

And they’ve become especially popular at Christmas.

HAPPY DAYS

Swysh is the brainchild of former Afterpay founding team member Michael Roth. But its genesis stems from a wedding gift starring Hollywood legend Henry Winkler.

“I organised a wedding present for a colleague at the time, it was from Henry Winkler, The Fonz,” Roth said.

SCROLL DOWN TO SEE WHAT NRL AND NRLW STARS CHARGE ON SWYSH

“The groom was a big ‘Happy Days’ fan. When he received it, he loved it. He shared it on his socials … I got a lot of questions about how I got it and it got me thinking, there was no way of reaching celebrities in a personalised way.

“In Australia, our biggest celebrities are athletes.”

So, in early 2020, Swysh was born.

Melbourne Storm fullback Ryan Papenhuyzen on Swysh.

Sydney Roosters fullback James Tedesco on Swysh.

INITIAL RELUCTANCE

Swysh started with 10 A-league players but its NRL presence grew quickly as Roth set about recruiting Murray, Tedesco and Tom Trbojevic.

South Sydney’s Murray was one of the first athletes to join, and at 500-plus videos and counting, has now made more clips than anyone on the platform.

And at only $180, the Rabbitohs skipper, NSW and Australian forward is a bargain.

But he wasn’t sold at first.

“I was playing hard to get at the start. Mike (Roth) messaged me on LinkedIn a few times before I actually replied,” Murray said.

“I didn’t really see it as ethical at first, considering the fact you are charging fans money. But the thing that stood out to me was that a portion, 20 per cent, of the proceeds go to charity.

“I was already getting hit up for a lot of requests so Swysh was a way for fans to book a request, but not pocket all the money and do something purposeful like raising money for charity. That was the game changer for me.”

Athletes like Murray have now helped raise over $750,000 for charities like Movember, Starlight Children‘s Foundation, Polished Man and Variety. The figure will eclipse the million-dollar mark in early 2023.

“I recently did Movember, and all the money I made on Swysh during November was donated to them and gave an excuse to grow a filthy moustache,” Murray said.

“To raise money for men’s health and mental health was a really good feeling.”

Rabbitohs star Latrell Mitchell is currently the most expensive NRL player to get on Swysh. Picture: NRL Photos

INTIMATE ENGAGEMENT

Athletes record videos that are generally about 30-60 seconds in length and are turned around within a week. They can decline a video request if they’re not comfortable with the content.

The most common requests are for birthdays and milestones but NRL players have also been asked to navigate some of the most intimate moments in the lives of their fans.

Fans have leaned on players to help with marriage proposals, gender reveals, messages of support for friends battling cancer, even brightening the day of young kids struggling with bullying in the schoolyard.

Melbourne superstar Papenhuyzen was even part of a Storm fan’s adoption journey.

“A young female wanted Ryan to ask her guardian to formally adopt her,” Roth revealed.

“She had a ceremony with family and friends and they played the video, then Ryan asked the guardian to formally adopt this girl.

Ryan Papenhuyzen is a man in demand. Picture: Jason McCawley/Getty

“They sent us a video of the reaction … it’s probably the most emotional video I have seen.

“There’s something about someone you don‘t know, but feel you know, talking about something personal to you. Some of the players make amazing heartfelt videos, and it’s really emotional for the people watching.”

Among the 500 videos Murray has recorded, one asking him to deliver a message at the funeral of Rabbitohs fan has stuck with him the most.

“It took me off guard a little bit, that’s for sure,” Murray said.

“The majority of requests are birthday shout outs. When I saw that one came through it made me think twice about what I was going to say.

“Obviously, you have to be more sensitive and make sure what you say is meaningful and respectful to the family.

“It was a reality check, it keeps you humble. It was nice to know when families are going through such difficult times that they fall back onto the things they love.

“It makes you realise us as athletes, as sports teams, the impact we have on people’s lives.”

Intimate requests are a growing trend.

“Fans are using the platform for really personal reasons,” Roth said.

“We see a lot of people reaching out to their role models for their own mental health … how they deal with a challenge or motivational requests.

“We see parents reaching because their child got dropped from the team and ask ‘how do you overcome adversity?’.”

SWEET SPOT

Some athletes charge as little as $20 for a video, while some fetch as much as $500 from the likes of Mitchell and Alfa Romeo Formula 1 driver Valtteri Bottas.

Murray initially charged $30 per video.

“I probably undervalued myself a little bit, I think I got 20 requests in the first 48 hours. It was pretty intense so we bumped up the price a bit and found a sweet spot,” Murray said.

“I have really enjoyed the journey so far, and seeing the fans‘ reaction and how you can make someone’s day, or impact their life, is rewarding.”

Murray would gladly stump up the cash to hear from his teammate and star fullback Mitchell.

“If I was to get a motivation shout out of ego pump-up it would be nice to get one from my teammates, like Latrell. He’s good at that,” Murray laughed.

Requests are seasonal and spike during times like Christmas and Father’s Day.

They are also very much performance aligned to performance.

“If a player scored a hat-trick on the weekend, we generally see a spike in requests for them,” Roth said.

“If players get injured, or are out for the season, they might not get as many requests as when they are starting each week.

“We also see a spike for Origin players around Origin times and the finals.”

But for this time of year, they are proving as popular as letters to Santa.

Originally published as NRL Swysh: Marriage proposals and adoptions – the stars leading boom in personalised video messages