ITV rejects Hills FA Cup ad
Adverts featuring BBC pundit Robbie Savage seen to be giving broadcasting rival undue publicity.
ITV Sport has rejected a series of William Hill adverts, featuring BBC football pundit Robbie Savage, created to be broadcast around this weekend’s FA Cup coverage.
The Daily Mail reports that ITV has rejected the Where’s Wally-style adverts featuring the former footballer, who is also one of Hills’ brand ambassadors, due to the fact he works for its main broadcasting rival. This could potentially give the BBC unwarranted exposure, described by the tabloid as “ambush publicity.”
Commenting on the decision to reject the ads, an ITV spokesperson told The Mail: “We work closely with our sponsorship partners to ensure that all material meets the approval of both parties before broadcast.”
The spokesperson added that an alternative advert had been created, and will be broadcast in place of the ads featuring Savage.
Hills is the official betting partner of the FA Cup, having signed a two and a half year deal with the Football Association in January last year. The revenue share agreement “ the first of its kind with a betting firm “ also sees the operator become an official supporter of the England football team, and gain access to the team’s branding and player image rights across various online and offline products.
At the time William Hill CEO Ralph Topping commented: “This deal with The FA will help us to achieve our objectives of developing the prominence of our brand and increasing market share in all our business channels.”