RFU Launches Go Play Rugby Cinema Ad
The RFU is running a cinema advertising campaign to promote its Go Play Rugby
grass roots programme with the aim of recruiting more players to the initiative.
The 20 second commercial will be screened in 294 cinemas across England
before the Bourne Ultimatum movie between 17th and 31st August reaching an
audience of more than 1.2m.
Fans will also get the chance to watch Rugby World Cup games for free in 20
selected Odeons in September and October as part of the Go Play Rugby
recruitment drive.
Players from the Cinderford, Old Patesians, Bredon and Cirencester clubs took
part in filming for the cinema advert at Hartpury College in Gloucestershire
last month.
The action follows one former player, George Brooks, who experiences a range
of emotions as he’s welcomed back into the sport and back onto the field.
The Go Play Rugby team opted to run the commercial alongside the Bourne
Ultimatum as the film most likely to fit the target audience of male former
players aged 16-30.
It also fits in with an innovative media campaign being followed up by local
clubs who have trained recruitment teams armed with resources like banners,
posters, beermats and business cards.
The aim is to make contact with former players and encourage them back into
the game by directing them to the www.goplayrugby.com website and to find
their nearest Go Play Rugby clubs by texting their postcode to 64411.
A longer two-minute version of the film will be screened as part of a
promotional package before Rugby World Cup games are shown in Odeon cinemas
during the tournament that kicks off next month.
Go Play Rugby, the largest recruitment drive ever mounted by a sport in the
United Kingdom, aims to bring former players back into the game and is timed to
coincide with this year’s Rugby World Cup.
The £1m campaign involves more than 700 clubs and 130 universities and
colleges, and is funded by the Rugby Football Foundation and National Sports
Foundation with the support of commercial sponsors Chelsea Building Society and
O2.
The aim is to bring 6,000 players – the equivalent of 400 new teams – back to
the game this season.
