ASA Bails On Shepherd Neame’s Spitfire Ad

The ASA has refused to uphold complaints against Shepherd Neame despite objections that an ad for the brewery’s Spitfire beer was “xenophobic” and would “encourage anti-social behaviour.”

The ad, which appeared in the Daily Telegraph, was headlined “Germany defeated. Now on to Japan. Sound familiar?” The strapline, shown next to a photograph of a Spitfire beer pump, stated: “The bottle of Britain.” Complainants objected that the ad was offensive and would encourage antisocial behaviour among English football fans travelling to Japan for the 2002 World Cup.

The advertisers said that advert was in keeping with the nostalgic humour of the Spitfire beer campaign and maintained that it was no more xenophobic than international football rivalry, which they believed echoed football tribalism rather than a hatred for foreigners. They argued that most readers regarded the enmity between Britain, Germany and Japan as “history” and would not be offended. The Daily Telegraph agreed, saying it believed that most readers would see the ad in a humorous light.

The ASA recognised that the advert linked the brewery’s established campaign strapline with present-day international football rivalry and considered that most readers would regard the ad as light-hearted and humorous. They concluded that the ad was unlikely to cause widespread offence and would not encourage football fans travelling to Japan to behave antisocially.

ASA: 020 7580 5555 www.asa.org.uk

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