‘A hell of a lot of work’: Nine on what the Australian Open means for brands and fans
The much-anticipated Australian Open begins today, a triumphant feat in the midst of a global pandemic and, because of it, ‘one of the biggest sporting events that’s going to happen in the world this year’. Mumbrella’s Brittney Rigby spoke to Nine’s Matt Granger and Brent Williams late last week, when today’s launch was still uncertain, about what to expect from the ad campaigns and ratings.
After a three week delay, quarantine dramas, and a last minute COVID-19 scare, many of the world’s top tennis players take to the court from today for an Australian Open that is once again big for both fans and advertisers.
In 2019, for instance, Uber Eats took over the last ad spot of the Open with an iconic commercial that looked like an extension of a tennis match.
And last year, Special Group once again intertwined the campaign with the tennis: Magda Szubanski was Sharon Strzelecki as a ball girl, and Serena Williams and Nick Kyrgios received food deliveries on court. The ads, part of the ‘Tonight I’ll Be Eating’ platform, bookended the ad breaks to again look like part of Nine’s Australian Open’s coverage (attracting Ad Standards scrutiny).
