Advertisers Cash In On Rugby Triumph
Jonny Wilkinson was not the only one celebrating England’s Rugby World Cup triumph. The tournament has been a huge success for ITV, its advertisers and the broadcast sponsor Travelex.
England’s matches were seen by an average of 7 million viewers on ITV1 with an average share of over 57%, which compares with 4.4 million and a 39% share for the last Rugby World Cup in 1999.
The success of England, combined with the UK’s new-found enthusiasm for the sport, is likely to make Rugby sponsorship more popular with advertisers, keen to associate with a winning team.
England secured the six top audiences of the Rugby World Cup. The semi-final against France was seen by an average of 7.8 million and the quarter-final against Wales by 6.3 million.
Unofficial overnight figures revealed the final reached a peak of 15 million with an 82% share of viewing and these figures are expected to rise when they are consolidated (see England’s Rugby World Cup Victory Watched By 14.5 Million).
According to ITV, the final was seen by an average of 6.5 million men, representing an 87% share of all males watching television on Saturday morning. There were 3.5 million ABC1 men viewing, a huge 91.3% share and 1.6 million men aged between 16-34 were glued to their screens.
Commenting on the sponsorship, Anthony Wagerman, head of marketing for Travelex, said: “As the world’s largest foreign exchange specialist, Travelex’s brand strategy has been to associate itself with world class teams and world class events. Travelex’s sponsorship of the Rugby World Cup on ITV represents our third broadcast sponsorship, having previously sponsored ITV’s coverage of the FIFA World Cup in 2002, and the Cricket World Cup in 2003.”
He continued: “We are absolutely delighted, therefore, with ITV’s tremendously successful broadcasting of the Rugby World Cup and the substantial audience size it has attracted. Apart from the obvious brand benefits to Travelex, this event has consolidated ITV’s position as a market leader in sports broadcasting.”
ITV: 020 7843 8000 www.itv.com
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