Best Women's Sport Campaigns of 2021
10 Best Women’s Sport Campaigns Of The Year
Back by popular demand, it’s Team Heroine’s top ten picks for best women’s sport campaign of the year.
Many were worried about the impact Covid would have on women’s sport but we’ve seen record-breaking audiences, the rise of new stars like Emma Raducanu, landmark sponsorship announcements and conversation-worthy marketing campaigns.
This year was by far the hardest to recgonise just 10 campaigns which clearly shows the growth in commercial interest around women’s sport. Not only were there more campaigns to choose from, but the standard was higher with more creative and quality productions than previous years.
We saw a good mix of dramatic, emotive empowerment ads with lighter ads centered more on humour that still managed to deliver powerful messages. Like previous years, football featured heavily in our top ten list.
So here they are, this year’s best sponsorship and marketing campaigns for women’s sport.
Women’s Sport Top 10 Campaigns Of 2021
While it’s hard to evaluate the long-term commercial success of these campaigns, we’ve considered a number of factors including creativity, bravery, relevance, authenticity, connection and contribution to women’s sport and its narrative.
10th Place: AFLW Good Wife Guide
What they did:
The AFLW used satire to entertain fans in the launch video for their 5th season in a campaign called ‘This Is Us’.
They matched words from the 1955 Housekeeping Monthly magazine; “The Good Wife’s Guide" with action shots that showcased the skill and athleticism of the players.
Why we love it:
It entertained with quirky words that were perfectly timed to powerful shots but most importantly it showcased the player’s talents, dedication and competitiveness and sent a clear message that women’s AFL (and women’s sport) should be taken seriously and that the season was not to be missed.
9th Place: Michelob Ultra See It, Save It
What they did:
Michelob Ultra Beer hacked Instagram’s algorithm in order to increase the visibility of women’s sport.
Instagram prioritises ‘saved’ posts in it’s feed so in this ad Michelob asked people to hit ‘save’ whenever they saw a women’s sports post so female athletes would receive more exposure.
They also committed $100m media inventory to women’s sport over the next 5 years and will ensure equal representation in their lifestyle marketing and Influencer roster
Why we love it:
The campaign was original, cost effective and most importantly had a tangible outcome with instant results that everyone could contribute to.
Michelob cleverly positioned themselves as a leader in women’s sport without even having to pay a cent in sponsorship rights.
8th Place: Suncorp & The Drive
What they did:
Long-term Netball Australia partner, Suncorp created a video aptly called ‘The Drive’ to capture the dedication of parents in helping their kids achieve their sporting dreams.
Why we love it:
It was based on the real-life story of Australian netball star, Lara Dunkley whose family clocked up over 2000km a week to get to training and games but was also a universal truth that all sporting families could relate to.
It was symbolic of Suncorp’s on-going support of netball from grassroots to elite level.
It was beautifully shot and punched at the heart.
7th Place: Google X Women Will
What they did:
Google put out this interactive visual story showing the challenges women’s sports face and the opportunities it presents for brands. It encapsulated 20 animations that were developed on insights developed from people using Google Search which culminated in a call-to-action #MakeHerKnown.
Why we love it:
They used data that related to their own product; Google Search and used it to inform a powerful insight around the interest of women’s sport.
It was a stunning, interactive visual story that was simple, clear, easy-to-follow and yet incredibly powerful. It was the right mix of data and story-telling with graphic prowess to boot.
Click on the visual below to swipe through the story.
6th Place: Dick’s & There She Is
What they did:
Dick’s Sporting Goods showed creative and executional brilliance in this powerful video that was a take-off of Miss America beauty pageants.
Using the “There She Is” theme music from Miss America, they swapped out beauty pageant wannabes, twirls, delicate smiles and shimmering dresses with a diverse range of female athletes, often in confronting sport moments.
They ran this video on TV and social media over the course of the Olympics.
It wasn’t just a token one-off impact ad either. Dick’s are heavily pushing into women’s sport and aligned with US soccer star, Sam Mewis, basketball sensation Sabrina Ionescu and also gave out 300,000 sport bras to underserved communities. .
Why we love it:
It cleverly tapped into what had previously been a key part of American culture; beauty pageants which are filled with symbolism and looked to redefine aspirations of the American women.
It was timed perfectly with sport’s pinnacle event, no not Miss America which may have once been seen as the lead event for American women but rather the Olympics.
The execution added to its impact and the juxtaposition of the music with the inspiring, real and sometimes brutal shots are what made it so effective. Not to mention it garnered 25 million views on YouTube alone.
5th Place: UEFA Women’s Champions League & Queens of Football
What they did:
European football’s top club competition, the UEFA Women’s Champions League created a ‘Queens of Football’ campaign that was layered with meaning by featuring stars of the tournament in a renaissance-inspired picture.
The image was the focal point which was fittingly projected on to Turin Palace ahead of the opening weekend but had physical activations that breath life into the campaign across the duration of the tournament.
4 female artists are creating dynamic art pieces as the competition unfolds which will be displayed in an exhibition leading up to the final.
Why we love it:
Not only was it a unique concept and activation but it was littered with deeper meaning and tie-ins that added to the unique story of the iconic event:
a) The campaign played on the tournament’s emblem of a crown and the players fierce rivalry
b) Symbolism of a Queen’s crown and a tagline of ‘There is only one crown’ tapped into the jeopardy around who will win
c) The key image played on the rich cultural heritage of the final’s location
We also love it’s dynamic nature of using artists to capture the drama as it unfolded, each one bringing their unique perspective to the action.
4th Place: Barclays FA Women’s Super League
What they did:
The UK’s Football Association created a witty promo to raise awareness for the Women’s Super League’s season by poking fun at people who don’t understand or fully appreciate the talents of these amazing players.
It was a star-studded affair featuring some of the league’s top players alongside a clueless photographer and showcased the player’s passion for the game by turning any moment into an opportunity to play football.
Why we love it:
The entertaining video reflected everything that the competition encompasses; the player’s competitiveness, the high skill level and their love for football.
It challenged people who write off women’s football to re-think the stereotypes and the standard of the game, all while leaving viewers with a smirk on their face.
3rd Place: Guinness Six Nations X Wikipedia
What they did:
Guinness sponsored the Six Nations Rugby competition and looked to address the lack of media coverage that women’s rugby received.
Only 6% of sports media coverage in the UK is dedicated to female athletes so they partnered with Wikimedia which garners 18 billion visitors per month
Guinness worked to improve the tiny 3% of total 14,916 rugby related biographies that were dedicated to female players on the platform by ensuring every player representing England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales in the Six Nations competition were properly profiled on the site.
Why we love it:
The campaign addressed a ‘real problem’ and 135,000 words were added to players profiles and ensured fans, media and future players could access, connect and be inspired by the player’s stories.
A cost-effective activation that was essentially a stunt, it gained wide media coverage for Guinness and the Women’s Six Nations but also created immediate action with tangible outcomes for the game.
Runner Up: CarMax & WNBA’s Sue Bird vs NBA’s Steph Curry
What they did:
CarMax sponsored both the NBA and WNBA and they cleverly utilised talent across both leagues to deliver this comedy-gold.
They used Golden State Warrior superstar, Steph Curry as a side-kick to WNBA legend, Sue Bird in order to recognise her achievements and elevate the WNBA and their stars.
A car salesman is stoked to have just served a 4 x Basketball Champ before Curry corrects him that he is only a 3 x Champ. The car salesman then points over to 4 x Basketball Champ, Sue Bird getting into her new car.
Why we love it:
It’s short and sharp but big on impact. It’s hard not to laugh and love this witty execution that was a sitter to go viral - the community loved and shared it widely on social media.
It was such a clever, entertaining and different way to highlight the WNBA’s talent by positively comparing their achievements with their NBA male counterparts.
Not to mention, they managed to get their product and sales messages across in what doesn’t feel like a cringe traditional car sales ad.
They created a whole series of ads using the stars labelled ‘Call Your Shot’ here.
Winner: DAZN - We All Rise With More Eyes
What they did:
Sport streaming platform DAZN took a leadership position in women’s football when they nabbed the global rights for UEFA’s Women’s Champions League (Europe’s premier club competition) and put them on YouTube for all to enjoy for free - a move that will no doubt grow interest in the game and tournament and deliver them subscribers down the track.
a) A 90second video titled “We All Rise With More Eyes” showcased the flow-on effects of giving the world free access to the tournament; it means more fans, more heroines, which leads to more sponsors, more inspired girls, more deals and on it goes fueling itself
b) All games streamed globally for free on YouTube in up to 3 languages
c) A docu-series called We All Rise takes a look at women’s football culture in key cities of the participating UEFA Champions League teams
d) Commissioned a research project with The Female Quotient around the visibility of women’s football
e) Enlisted the competition’s highest goal scorer, Ada Hegerberg as an Ambassador alongside Chelsea and Canadian star, Jessie Fleming
Why we love it:
It was a brilliant insight around the impact that showing the games for free would have and it was even more brilliantly executed. The campaign positioned DAZN as not just a partner adding to this but as one leading it.
A powerful, memorable, catchy and inclusive tagline; ‘We all Rise With More Eyes’ makes it easy for people to get on board. The unique style of voice-over, raw, fast-paced and gritty footage makes it stand out, feel ground-breaking and like the start of a ‘movement’.
Women’s sport has been notoriously hard to access given the lack of interest from traditional broadcasters. DAZN securing global rights for the whole world to enjoy, free was an unprecedented partnership and of an unprecedented scale - it doesn’t get better than this!
The 10 Winners:
1st - DAZN & We All Rise With More Eyes
2nd - CarMax x Sue Bird vs Steph Curry
3rd - Guinness Six Nations x Wikipedia
4th - Barclays FA Women’s Super League
5th - UEFA Champions League x Queen’s of Football
6th - Dick’s Sporting Goods & There She Is
7th - Google x Women Will
8th - Suncorp & The Drive
9th - Michelob Ultra Beer x See it, Save it
10th - AFLW Good Wife Guide
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