McDonald’s, best known in Australia simply as Macca’s, lays claim to being the one place that all of the game goes in its multi-channel new rugby league season NRL partner activation programme created by DDB Sydney.
The fast food giant’s message claim is that whether you are a fan, a coach, a commentator and even a star player, Macca’s is the place everyone in footy heads to before or after the game.
The integrated country-wide activation from DDB Sydney celebrates the return of footy – with the start of the new NRL season which runs from X to Y – to the menu by leveraging its official partnership through a campaign featuring a strong team of famous footy personalities doing what they do best: including halfback Mitch Moses feeding a hungry scrum, Sam Thaiday commentates on his huge hit of coffee and Ricky Stuart taking part in a ‘post-meal’ press conference.
The campaign, which launched in the last week of February, plays out across Aussie broadcast TV, online video, out-of-home, paid social, digital and in-stadium and was led by a 45-second hero spot called ‘Macca’s Where The Games Goes’.
With a voice over from iconic NRL commentator, Ray Warren, the creative features many of the game’s biggest names including Moses, Thaiday and Staurt, as well as Kezie Apps, Reuben Cotter, Jai Arrow, ‘Fletch’ and ‘Hindy’ and Wally Lewis.
Other new season activation strands include the tongue-in-cheek players-in-restaurant’, socially led ‘Player of the Kitchen’ and ‘Soft Serve Challenge’ initiatives.
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“We know how much our customers love footy, and we are proud to provide a place for fans to meet before or after a game. Win or lose, we’ll always be there for fans and this campaign is the perfect expression of that.”
McDonald’s Australia Director Of Marketing Amanda Nakad
“It’s amazing the people who show up at Macca’s after the game. In this latest spot, Wally, Ricky, Ronald, and a proper dream team of league legends do a great job of helping Macca’s further build its connection with Aussie footy fans.”
DDB Sydney Executive Creative Director Matt Chandler
The campaign was commissioned by a McDonald’s client team led by Marketing Director Amanda Nakad, Senior Manager (Sport Partnerships) Matthew Wallace and
National Sponsorships Manager Nicole Micos.
The creative agency was DDB where the group working on the project included Executive Creative Director Matt Chandler, Senior Creatives Nick Cole and Patrick Allenby, Group Business Director Nick Cleeve, Business Director Kurt Griffin, Producer Laura Oleart and Strategy Partner Katharina Wynne.
The media agency was OMD where the team was led by Manager (Sports Partnerships) Christian Agliozzo and executive (Sports Partnerships) William Cottle.
The production company was Powered Studios with Executive Producer Liza Goodall, Director Justin McMillan, Producer Tom Low, Photographer Chris Budgeon and Director of Photography Tim Tregoning.
The post house was Heckler with Editor Andrew Holmes and Colourist Fergus Rothman. Sound production was handled by Rumble Studios’ Sounder Designer Daniel William and Sound Producer Michael Gie.
Sport represents a key strand of McDonald’s Australia’s umbrella marketing mix and other recent sports sponsorship activation have ranged from its 2023 ‘State Of Origin ‘Footy, I’m Loving It’ campaign and its unifying FIFA 2023 Women’s World Cup work to its 2020 Team Emirates New Zealand ‘The Crew Behind The Crew’ America’s Cup activation.